FROM   THE  LIBRARY   OF 


REV.   LOUIS    FITZGERALD    BENSON,  D.  D. 


BEQUEATHED   BY   HIM   TO 


THE   LIBRARY  OF 


PRINCETON  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 


Division  S>CC? 

Sectlo*  ^fldO 


PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 


Practical  Church  Music 


A  Discussion  of  Purposes 
Methods    and    Plans 


(& 


By 
EDMUND  S.  LORENZ 

Author  of  "Getting  Ready  for  a  Revival"  "The 
Gospel  Worker's  Treasury"  etc. 

Editor  of  "The  Choir  Leader,"  "The  Choir  Herald" 
and  "  Der  Kirchenchor  " 


New  York         Chicago         Toronto 

Fleming  H.  Revell  Company 

London       and       Edinburgh 


Copyright,    1909,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  80  Wabash  Avenue 
Toronto:  25  Richmond  Street,  W. 
London:  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:      100    Princes    Street 


PREFACE 

SOME  one  has  said  that  in  a  preface  a  writer  always 
comes  forward  with  a  halter  in  his  hand ;  if  he  is 
sensitive  and  self-conscious,  he  pleads  guilty  to 
sundry  faults  and  presents  the  reader  with  the  halter  to 
execute  the  sentence ;  if  he  is  combative  and  aggressive 
he  proceeds  to  hang  the  reader !  Some  shrewd  person 
will  be  sure  to  say  that  in  this  preface  both  sides  suffer. 

However  that  may  be,  it  seems  to  me  proper  to  hide 
away  in  this  preface  some  personal  statements  that  ought 
to  be  made  and  yet  do  not  seem  to  fit  into  the  general 
discussion.  They  will  enable  the  few  wise  men  who  read 
prefaces  to  understand  the  situation  better  and  to  reach 
a  juster  conclusion  regarding  the  practical  study  that 
follows. 

The  writer  was  asked  by  the  faculty  of  the  Theological 
Department  of  Vanderbilt  University  to  prepare  a  series 
of  lectures  on  church  music.  He  gladly  accepted  the 
opportunity  and  delivered  the  lectures  before  the  students 
and  faculty  in  the  autumn  of  1903.  Somewhat  rewritten 
and  enlarged  they  were  subsequently  given  to  the  students 
of  Union  Biblical  Seminary.  The  kindly  interest  shown 
in  the  discussion  at  both  seminaries  led  me  to  thoroughly 
recast  and  largely  amplify  the  materials  contained  in  the 
lectures  for  the  benefit  of  the  larger  clerical  and  musical 
public  who  it  seemed  to  me  needed  the  help  they  were 
intended  to  afford. 

I  have  not  tried  to  escape  the  influence  upon  style  and 

5 


6  PREFACE 

method  the  original  form  of  presentation  exerted.  I  felt 
that  the  freedom  of  treatment  lectures  allow,  and  the 
direct  and  personal  style  they  demand,  would  give  me 
a  wider  field  of  illustration  and  application  than  a  more 
formal  and  academical  treatment  afforded,  would  be  more 
in  harmony  with  a  practical  discussion  of  the  subject,  and 
would  be  more  likely  to  be  convincing  and  effective. 

If  any  one  shall  be  impressed  that  there  is  an  exces- 
sive repetition  of  ideas  in  some  cases,  or  with  the  patent 
obviousness  or  utter  commonplaceness  in  others,  let  me 
aggravate  the  offense  by  acknowledging  that  in  both 
particulars  it  was  deliberate  !  One  man's  commonplaces 
are  the  novelties  and  inspirations  of  another.  I  remember 
too  well  the  short  period  in  my  own  early  intellectual 
development  when  I  found  Martin  Tupper  helpful  and 
stimulating,  to  underrate  the  value  of  platitudes.  The 
Christian  workers,  clerical  and  lay,  whom  I  hope  to  help 
most,  need  both  the  obvious  detail  and  the  iteration. 

If  I  shall  be  charged  with  excessive  temerity  in  dis- 
cussing mooted  questions  of  taste  and  method,  and  with 
undue  dogmatism  in  the  expression  of  conclusions  re- 
garding them  antagonistic  to  those  generally  prevalent, 
I  shall  not  be  careful  to  defend  myself.  If  thirty  years 
of  active  service  in  practically  every  relation  to  the  music 
of  the  church  service,  and  under  the  most  varied  condi- 
tions, give  me  no  right  to  speak  with  authority,  I  have 
no  other  credentials  to  offer. 

The  rather  earnest  and  reiterated  opposition  to  the 
point  of  view  and  the  conceptions  of  final  purpose  ac- 
cepted as  self-evident  by  musicians  and  clergymen  of 
generous  and  thorough  musical  and  literary  culture  and 
of  fine  discrimination  and  noble  ideals,  here  and  abroad, 
is  not  due  to  any  inherent  difference  of  personal  taste, 


PEEFACE  7 

but  to  a  difference  of  conviction  as  to  the  right  of  that 
cultivated  taste  to  exclusive  consideration.  I  have  too 
high  an  admiration  for  the  genuinely  cultivated  and  sin- 
cerely conscientious  apostles  of  high  literary  and  musical 
standards,  have  profited  too  much  personally  from  their 
creative  and  critical  work,  and  have  too  profound  a  real- 
ization of  the  value  to  the  church  of  their  emphasis  upon 
the  claims  of  the  artistic,  even  when  that  emphasis  is 
excessive  and  impracticable,  that  I  should  depreciate 
their  work  or  question  their  sincerity.  Their  goal  is 
mine  as  well ;  only  I  am  rowing  on  the  other  side  of  the 
boat! 

If  there  is  an  occasional  gleam  of  indignation  or  glow 
of  heat  in  what  I  have  written,  their  objects  have  been 
the  speakers  and  writers  of  shallow  culture  and  limited 
knowledge  who,  without  really  understanding  them,  put 
on  the  views  of  the  masters  as  they  might  don  their 
mantles,  because  they  think  them  authoritative  and  "  in 
good  form,"  and  mechanically  repeat  them  with  an  affec- 
tation of  superior  taste  they  have  neither  the  ability  nor 
the  opportunity  to  cultivate.  One  finds  in  private  con- 
versation, in  public  addresses,  in  periodicals  and  even  in 
books  a  good  deal  of  discussion  on  church  music  that 
is  well  characterized  by  Dr.  Curwen  as  "  the  gush  of 
amateurism."  Its  chief  value  usually  is  the  opportunity 
it  affords  for  cultivating  the  grace  of  patience.  Perhaps 
the  most  exasperating  characteristic  of  much  of  this 
discussion  is  its  lack  of  genuineness.  What  Kobbe  says 
of  admirers  of  Bach  may  be  applied  to  the  partisans  of 
artistic  church  music :  "  It  seems  to  me  that  the  extreme 
Bach  enthusiasts  can  be  divided  into  two  classes — musi- 
cians who  are  able  to  appreciate  what  he  did  for  music 
on  its  technical  side,  and  persons  who  want  to  create 


8  PEEFACE 

the  impression  that  they  know  more  than  they  really 
do."  Irritating  as  this  musical  cant  is,  I  trust  that  my 
zeal  for  securing  the  highest  spiritual  results  from  the 
service  of  song  in  the  churches  has  not  hurried  me 
beyond  the  limits  of  fraternal  courtesy  or  Christian 
charity. 

I  am  debtor  to  too  many  books  on  church  music  for 
historical  illustration  and  practical  suggestion  to  give 
the  catalogue  of  them  here.  It  is  but  just  that  I  men- 
tion my  obligation  to  my  brother,  the  Rev.  D.  E. 
Lorenz,  Ph.D.,  D.  D.,  of  the  Church  of  the  Good  Shep- 
herd, New  York  City,  for  helpful  criticism.  Kindly  men- 
tion should  also  be  made  of  Mr.  Charles  Stebbins  of 
Dayton,  Ohio,  without  whose  suggestions  the  discussion 
of  the  pipe  organ  would  have  had  much  less  practical 
value. 

If  this  study  will  assist  in  crystallizing  the  musical 
ideals  of  church  workers  into  practical  forms,  and  lead 
to  a  more  genuine,  more  varied,  and  more  effective  use 
of"  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,"  not  to  men- 
tion "  stringed  instruments  and  organs,"  I  shall  have  been 
well  repaid  for  the  time  and  thought  spent  upon  it. 

Edmund  S.  Lorenz. 
Dayton,  Ohio. 
February  i,  igop. 


CONTENTS 


CHAP. 


Introduction 


PART  I 


THE  MINISTER'S  MUSICAL  PREPARATION 

I.  The  Character  of  Music 

II.  How  Church  Music  Assists 

III.  Church  Music  an  Applied  Art  . 

IV.  Why  a  Minister  Should  Study  Music 

V.  What  a  Minister  Should  Know  About  Music 

VI.  A  Study  in  Church  Hymnals     . 

VII.  American  Hymn  Tunes       .... 

VIII.  American  Spirituals  and  Gospel  Songs 

IX.  German    Chorals    and    Modern  English  Hymn 

Tunes    ....... 

X.  The  Tests  of  a  Good  Hymn  Tune 

XI.  Music  in  Theological  Seminaries 


PAGE 
II 


19 

38 
48 

58 

72 
80 

86 
91 

!I3 
121 
130 


PART  II 

THE  MINISTER'S  HYMNOLOGICAL  PREPARATION 


I. 

The  Value  of  Hymns 

•      139 

II. 

What  is  a  Hymn  ?     . 

•      H3 

III. 

Is  the  Gospel  Song  a  Hymn  ? 

.         .     156 

IV. 

The  Study  of  Hymns 

.         .      167 

V. 

The  Selection  of  Hymns    . 

.      180 

PART  III 

CONGREGATIONAL  SINGING 

I.  The  Value  of  Congregational  Singing 

II.  The  Announcement  of  Hymns    . 

III.  The  Selection  of  Tunes     . 

9 


191 
198 
204 


10 


CONTENTS 


CHAP.  PAGE 

IV.  Leadership  in  Singing         .....     209 

V.  Methods  in  Congregational  Singing  .  .216 

VI.  Things  to  Avoid  in  Congregational  Singing       .      230 

PART  IV 

THE  MANAGEMENT  OF  CHURCH  CHOIRS 

I.  The  Purpose  of  the  Choir  ....     239 

II.  The  Form  of  the  Choir    .....     244 

III.  The  Personnel  of  the  Choir     ....     254 

IV.  The  Organization  of  the  Choir         .         .         .     260 

V.  The  Choir  Director         .         .  .         .     264 

VI.  The  Organist  .  .  .  .  .  .  .275 

VII.  The  Choir  Rehearsal 278 

VIII.  The  Social  Life  of  the  Choir    .  290 

IX.  The  Selection  of  the  Music      ....     293 

X.  The  Finances  of  the  Choir        ....     299 

XI.  The  Work  of  the  Choir  .....     303 

XII.  The  Choir  in  the  Church  Service      .         .         .     308 

XIII.  The  Minister  and  the  Choir     .         .         .         .314 

XIV.  Substitutes  for  the  Choir  .         .         .         .     322 

PART  V 

PRACTICAL  APPLICATIONS  OF  CHURCH  MUSIC 

I.  The  Song  Sermon 329 

II.  The  Song  Service       ......     344 

III.  Church  Solos  .         .         .         .         .         •         -35° 

IV.  Funeral  Music 355 

V.  Evangelistic  Music  .  .  .  .  .  3 5^ 

VI.  Music  in  the  Sunday-School      ....     363 

VII.  The  Church  Organ 368 

VIII.  Purchasing  a  Pipe  Organ  .  .  .  .  •     375 


Conclusion 


393 


Appendixes 


397 


INTRODUCTION 

IN  order  that  my  discussion  of  church  music  may  be 
more  lucid  and  helpful,  the  point  of  view,  the  pur- 
pose, and  the  conceptions  underlying  it,  ought  to 
be  made  clear. 

The  point  of  view  is  that  of  the  Christian  worker  seek- 
ing definite  results  in  the  winning  of  the  lost  and  in  the 
spiritual  edification  of  the  saved.  These  are  the  primary 
aims,  although  he  may  welcome  the  by-products  of  inci- 
dental and  subordinate  effects  that  are  well  worthy  of 
consideration. 

The  purpose  is  to  render  Christian  workers  more  ef- 
ficient in  their  use  of  music  in  religious  work  by  giving 
them  clear  conceptions  of  the  kind  of  music  to  be  used, 
and  of  the  definite  results  that  may  be  expected  from  its 
use,  and  by  suggesting  detailed  plans  and  methods  by 
which  these  desirable  results  may  be  secured.  Ideal 
standards  have  their  place,  an  important  though  subor- 
dinate one,  but  here  we  propose  to  be  matter-of-fact, 
practical,  concrete,  with  actual  immediate  results  among 
actual  average  people  as  the  final  criterion  in  every  phase 
of  the  work. 

Just  as  in  ministerial  training  the  chief  purpose  is  not 
primarily  general  culture — although  that  may  be  a  very 
valuable  and  greatly  to  be  desired  incidental  acquire- 
ment ;  not  minute  and  accurate  scholarship — although 
that  may  be  recognized  as  a  prerequisite  very  essential  to 
the  full  realization  of  its  final  purpose ;  not  literary  ma- 
terials nor  skill  in  handling  them  in  a  masterly  and  enter- 

II 


12  INTEODUCTION 

taining  way — although  that  is  an  important  factor  in  the 
success  of  any  minister ;  not  mere  public  oratory,  able 
to  sway  assembled  multitudes — although  that  is  a  com- 
bined gift  and  acquirement  that  any  preacher  may  most 
earnestly  covet ;  but  the  preparation  of  men  to  be  prac- 
tically successful  preachers  and  pastors,  competent  for 
every  emergency,  adaptable  to  all  conditions  and  en- 
vironments, skillful  in  methods  and  plans,  wise  in  the 
control  and  management  of  men  and  women,  in  short, 
men  who  are  able  to  do  things,  all  round  "  workmen  that 
need  not  to  be  ashamed : "  so  my  purpose  is  not  to  em- 
phasize high  ideals — although  without  them  we  should 
sink  into  degrading  shallowness  and  vulgarity  subversive 
of  the  very  purposes  we  seek ;  nor  a  sense  of  the  high 
dignity  of  divine  worship — although  without  that  the 
truest  success  in  our  church  music  is  impossible ;  nor  the 
value  of  a  wide  acquaintance  with  and  appreciation  of  the 
noblest  music  that  has  been  written — although  without 
that  there  can  be  no  broad  intelligent  mastery  of  any  and 
every  situation  ;  nor  the  cultivation  of  a  fine  and  discrim- 
inative musical  taste — although  that  too  is  essential  to 
practical  adaptation  to  varied  situations  and  demands ; 
but  so  to  instruct  and  inspire  all  who  have  leadership  in 
the  service  of  song  that  they  will  be  able  in  the  place  where 
they  are  working,  among  the  people  for  whom  they  are 
toiling,  to  provide  the  greatest  religious  helpfulness,  the 
most  lifting  inspiration,  the  impulse  to  the  most  positive 
and  immediate  spiritual  decision  that  the  use  of  music  can 
bring  the  souls  for  whom  they  are  responsible. 

It  seems  to  me  important  that  I  should  at  the  very 
outset  make  it  clear  that  the  governing  conception  of  my 
treatment  is  practicality.  If  the  reader  cannot  accept  this 
attitude,  we  had  better  part  company  in  amity  and  good 


INTRODUCTION  13 

will  at  once,  for  we  have  high  authority  for  the  statement 
that  it  is  ill  walking  with  one  with  whom  we  do  not 
agree. 

While  in  the  course  of  my  discussion  it  may  be  neces- 
sary again  and  again  to  restate  and  reapply  the  philo- 
sophical and  psychological  principles  at  the  foundation  of 
successful  church  music,  it  is  assumed  that  here  as  else- 
where in  practical  church  work,  what  is  needed  is  not  so 
much  a  philosophical  discussion  of  general  principles,  as 
the  suggestion  of  detailed  and  definite  methods  and  mi- 
nutely specific  plans  that  shall  concretely  suggest  and  il- 
lustrate the  general  principles,  and  so  clearly  indicate  their 
further  application.  Generalities  are  rarely  suggestive  or 
helpful.  It  is  the  particular  fact,  the  specific  plan,  that 
interests,  inspires,  and  suggests.  At  the  same  time,  while 
the  helpfulness  of  this  discussion  ought  to  be  gauged  by 
its  practical  definiteness, — its  minute  detail, — it  will  have 
failed  in  realizing  its  larger  usefulness,  if  it  prove  not  the 
mere  seed-corn  of  the  larger  harvest  of  practical  ideas,  new 
schemes,  fresh  combinations,  of  wider  application  and 
richer  resources  than  can  be  suggested  in  the  limited  space 
allowed  for  it. 

It  is  also  assumed  that  while  fitness,  dignity,  intellec- 
tuality, culture,  shall  all  have  their  modifying  influence, 
the  determining  consideration  in  our  whole  investigation 
and  study  shall  be  moral  and  spiritual  results. 

It  may  well  be  that  I  shall  use  the  word  "  results  "  so 
often  in  what  follows  that  it  will  become  badly  worn  and 
very  offensive ;  but,  after  all,  in  that  word  lies  the  heart 
of  the  whole  matter.  Most  of  our  failure  in  the  manage- 
ment of  church  music  is  due  to  our  losing  sight  of  the 
results  as  the  finally  determining  factor.  Back  in  1827 
Lowell  Mason,  in  a  lecture  on  church  music,  given  in  a 


14  INTEODUCTION 

leading  Boston  church,  which  made  so  great  an  impres- 
sion that  a  committee  headed  by  Dr.  Lyman  Beecher 
asked  for  its  publication,  said  with  great  emphasis  :  "  The 
principal  reason  for  the  present  degraded  state  of  church 
music  seems  to  be  that  its  design  is  forgotten.  ...  It 
is  often  given  up  almost  exclusively  into  the  hands  of  those 
who  have  no  other  qualifications  than  mere  musical  tal- 
ent, and  who,  being  destitute  of  any  feelings  of  piety,  are 
almost  as  unfit  to  conduct  the  singing  of  the  church  as 
they  would  be  the  preaching  or  the  praying." 

Moreover,  in  canvassing  results,  I  shall  not  confine  my- 
self to  spiritual  results  among  highly  cultivated  persons, 
but  include  the  larger  results  to  be  secured  among  the 
masses  of  mankind  who  need  spiritual  help  all  the  more 
that  they  lack  general  education  and  culture.  An 
American  music  critic  wrote  of  a  book  he  was  editing : 
"  Reference  can  only  go  to  that  element  of  the  people 
which  support  the  musical  art — not  to  the  vulgar  mass 
which  confounds  the  emanations  of  the  so-called  music 
hall  with  music.  With  them  this  book  has  nothing  to 
do."  The  Christian  worker  may  not  take  such  an  ex- 
clusive attitude.  Christ  came  to  call  sinners  to  repent- 
ance, not  the  righteous.  It  is  the  "vulgar  mass  "  that 
needs  religious  inspiration,  for  the  sake  not  only  of  its  in- 
dividual souls,  but  for  that  of  the  general  community  as 
well.  Hence  any  broad,  genuine  consideration  of  the 
spiritual  effects  of  music  must  include  means  and  methods 
to  be  used  among  the  common  people. 

So  much  emphasis  has  been  put  upon  the  dignity  of 
the  means  in  late  years  that  we  are  in  danger  of  forget- 
ting the  actual  purpose  of  the  means.  Stress  has  been 
laid  upon  artistic  refinement  and  culture  in  our  church 
work  until  the  real  occasion  of  our  efforts  is  lost  from 


INTRODUCTION  15 

sight.  This  is  as  true  of  our  preaching,  our  church 
buildings,  our  church  furnishings  and  our  church  social 
life  as  it  is  of  our  singing.  Our  Lord  did  not  disdain  to 
use  spittle  and  the  dust  of  the  roadside  in  healing  the 
blind.     Shall  we  be  more  fastidious  than  He  ? 

What  are  the  practical  results  we  seek?  We  here 
strike  the  difficulty  that  again  and  again  throughout  the 
history  of  the  Church  has  wrecked  its  musical  efforts. 
Those  results  are  so  general,  so  vague  and  intangible, 
that  it  is  difficult  to  define  them.  This  is  all  the  more 
unfortunate  that  in  direct  proportion  to  the  indetermin- 
ateness  of  the  end  sought,  and  to  the  elaborateness  and 
complexity  of  the  means  used,  is  the  danger  of  entirely 
losing  sight  of  the  end  and  of  making  the  perfection  of 
the  means  the  final  end.  It  is  important,  therefore,  at 
the  very  outset  to  have  a  clear  conception  of  what  we 
wish  to  accomplish  by  the  use  of  church  music. 

To  say  that  the  edification  of  saints  and  the  conver- 
sion of  sinners  is  the  final  purpose  of  church  music  is 
easy  enough.  The  iteration  of  the  proposition  until  it 
becomes  the  governing  idea  in  all  our  work  is  helpful 
and  corrects  many  a  misleading  idea  or  purposeless  plan. 
But  in  what  way  does  this  upbuilding  of  believers  and  this 
persuasion  of  unbelievers  follow  from  the  psalms  and 
hymns  we  sing  and  the  voluntaries  we  play?  By  ex- 
pressing the  feelings  of  the  children  of  God  and  by  ap- 
pealing to  those  of  the  unsaved,  is  the  prompt  and  cor- 
rect reply.  What  feelings  are  we  to  express  and  to  what 
emotions  are  we  to  appeal  ?  How  are  we  to  reach  and 
impress  these  particular  sensibilities  ?  Here  is  the  point 
where  the  usual  thinking  upon  this  important  subject 
seems  to  get  out  of  focus. 

It  is  sufficient  at  this  point  to  locate  the  difficulty. 


16  INTRODUCTION 

Further  on  I  shall  have  a  better  opportunity  to  define 
more  clearly  the  psychology  of  the  value  and  use  of 
music  in  church  work. 

I  have  thus  emphasized  in  a  preliminary  way  the  prac- 
tical attitude  I  propose  to  assume  in  the  investigation  of 
church  music,  because  most  writers  and  speakers  discuss- 
ing it  have  done  so  from  a  historical,  philosophical,  or 
artistic  point  of  view :  and  also  because  I  deem  it  essential 
and  vital  to  any  practically  helpful  study  of  this  neglected 
field  of  church  effort.  Church  music  has  been  treated  as 
pure  art,  when  it  is  only  applied  art.  Much  has  been 
written  about  standards  of  musical  art,  little  about  its  ap- 
plication to  church  life  and  work.  On  the  contrary,  I 
shall  give  only  incidental  attention  to  its  artistic,  philo- 
sophical, or  historical  phases,  while  its  practical  application 
to  the  needs  and  purposes  of  our  American  churches  will 
be  my  engrossing  theme. 


Part  I 

The   Minister's   Musical  Preparation 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  MUSIC 

BEFORE  proceeding  to  the  more  detailed  practical 
discussion  of  my  subject,  it  is  proper  that  I 
should  make  clear  the  character,  method  of 
operation,  and  purpose  of  sacred  music.  A  wrong  con- 
ception here  will  seriously  limit  and  cripple  musical  effort 
in  the  church,  or  even  destroy  all  its  practical  effi- 
ciency. 

There  are  few  psychological  problems  more  obscure  or 
perplexing  than  the  mental  character  of  music.  The  mind 
recognizes  differences  of  pitch,  of  duration,  and  of  force 
and  accent  in  the  tones  that  are  heard.  But  this  mental  ap- 
prehension touches  only  the  superficial  facts  and  does  not 
reach  the  inner  relation  between  the  tones  in  which  lies 


the  musical  idea  itself.     We  hear  a  sound 


and  immediately  after  another  sound 

The  sounds  differ  in  pitch  and  duration.  There  may 
even  be  a  recognition  of  relation  between  the  pitch  of  the 
two  tones.  But  the  sounding  of  these  tones  separately 
makes  no  musical  impression  upon  us.  But  when  we 
play  or  sing  them  one  immediately  after  the  other,  it 
makes  a  musical  phrase  with  a  new  effect  depending  on 
the  order  of  the  tones. 

*9 


20 


PEACTICAL  CHTJBCH  MUSIC 


A: 


-p~ 


-0s. •*_. 


is  stimulating,  inspiring,  stirring. 


P 


W=t- 


-=■*. 


5 


is  calming  and  gives  a  sense  of  finality.  There 
is  absolutely  nothing  in  the  mere  mental  facts  that 
should  produce  this  impression.  I  have  purposely 
chosen  a  very  simple  illustration,  which  I  could 
vary  and  elaborate  still  more.  We  should  say  of  it, 
here  is  a  musical  idea.  But  in  what  does  the  idea  con- 
sist? 


ps 


T=T 


3=* 


*\J       I 


Here  is  a  phrase  from  a  famous  solo  in  "  The 
Messiah."  Can  I  impress  any  one  with  its  musical 
value  by  merely  telling  him  the  number  of  vibra- 
tions of  each  of  these  eleven  tones  ?  There  does 
not  seem  to  be  any  perceptible  relation  between 
the  mental  observations  and  the  actual  effect  upon 
the  mind.  May  we  not  assume  that  there  is  none 
and  that  the  effect  is  produced  in  some  other 
way? 

A  year  or  two  ago  I  participated  in  the  learning  and 
rendition  of  Wagner's  "  Pilgrim  Chorus  "  from  "  Tann- 
hauser."  The  men  had  practiced  it  somewhat  with  the 
piano  in  previous  rehearsals  with  no  particular  enthusi- 
asm or  interest.    At  the  final  rehearsal  the  orchestra 


THE  CHAEACTEE  OF  MUSIC  21 

came  in  to  assure  perfect  cooperation  at  the  concert. 
The  hall  in  which  the  choral  society  held  its  practices 
was  somewhat  small  with  a  low  ceiling.  As  the  com- 
bined men's  chorus  and  orchestra  fairly  crowded  the 
room  with  vibrations,  I  was  exceedingly  interested  to  see 
the  effect  upon  all  concerned.  The  conductor,  usually 
remarkable  for  his  poise  and  self-control,  became  almost 
frenzied  with  physical  excitement ;  many  of  the  singers, 
strong,  stalwart  men,  showed  by  their  flushed  faces,  ex- 
cited gesticulations,  rolling  eyes,  and  vibrant  singing, 
how  far  the  music  was  sweeping  them  out  beyond  the 
bounds  of  their  usual  reserve.  Just  a  touch  more  and  I 
felt  we  should  have  had  some  of  the  physical  results  of 
the  old  time  revival  meetings.  The  same  chorus  and 
orchestra  rendered  the  same  music  in  a  large  hall  where 
the  sound  was  not  confined,  with  no  excitement  what- 
ever. The  sensory  and  intellectual  elements  in  the  two 
renderings  were  absolutely  the  same ;  whence  the  differ- 
ence in  effect  ? 

From  boyhood  up  I  always  heard  the  overture  to 
"  Tannhauser "  with  great  delight.  Yet  when  a  short 
while  before  his  death  Anton  Seidl  gave  it  in  our  city 
with  his  orchestra,  he  added  trombones  at  a  certain  cli- 
macteric point  and  touched  a  consummate  note  that  so 
nearly  swept  me  off  my  feet  that  I  barely  escaped  rising 
up  and  shouting.  Here  again  the  effect  was  not  intel- 
lectual, but  psychical  and  even  physical. 

The  waves  of  sound  are  actually  physical  vibrations  in 
which,  according  to  their  relative  conductiveness,  all  the 
material  particles  of  the  body  participate.  Is  it  likely 
that  the  matter  of  the  extremely  sensitive  nervous  system 
should  not  be  affected  by  these  vibrations  ?  Edmund 
Gurney  in  his  valuable  book,  "  The  Power  of  Sound," 


22  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

remarks  on  this  point,  "  Of  all  formless  impressions, 
sounds  can  give  by  far  the  strongest  shock  to  the  organ- 
ism." He  adds,  "  The  eye  is  always  seeing  lights  and 
colours  and  rests  contentedly  on  agreeable  masses ;  while 
the  ear  is  peculiarly  affected  and  excited  by  the  occa- 
sional phenomena  which  present  distinct  sound  colour." 
The  difference  clearly  lies  in  the  distinctly  physical  char- 
acter of  sound.  Whether  the  nerves  are  reached  exclu- 
sively through  the  auditory  nerve,  or  whether  there  is  an 
obscure  direct  effect  upon  the  nervous  tissues  I  am  not 
prepared  to  say.  I  should  like  to  try  some  experiments 
in  this  line  upon  a  company  of  entirely  deaf  persons.  I 
should  expect  the  direct  effect  of  music  upon  the  nerves 
to  be  analogous  to  that  of  unusual  humidity  or  of  marked 
electric  tension. 

That  the  effect  of  music  is  physical  and  not  intellectual 
is  to  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  difference  of  suscepti- 
bility to  it  depends  on  type  of  physical  constitution. 
Phlegmatic,  coarse-grained  persons  are  rarely  musical. 
Musical  gifts  and  intellectual  gifts  are  often  in  inverse 
proportion  in  musical  persons.  Blind  Tom  was  a  musical 
prodigy,  but  an  idiot !  Children,  infants  even,  are  usually 
very  susceptible.  With  a  mother's  fond  vanity  my  wife 
once  told  a  noted  composer  visiting  in  our  home  of  the 
musical  responsiveness  of  our  latest  baby :  how  he  would 
lie  supremely  happy  when  the  music  was  soft  and  sweet ; 
how  he  would  begin  to  wave  his  hands  more  and  more 
vigorously  as  the  music  became  more  stirring ;  how  when 
it  became  loud  and  crashing  he  would  kick  with  his  feet 
and  wave  his  hands,  squirming  and  crowing  in  a  very 
abandon  of  delight.  Naively  and  blissfully  oblivious  to 
the  rather  malapropos  character  of  his  reply,  our  visitor 
remarked,  "  I  have  noticed  that  my  cats  are  affected  in 


THE  CHAEACTEE  OP  MUSIC  23 

the  same  way ! "  Whatever  his  social  tact,  his  philos- 
ophy certainly  was  correct,  for  many  animals  are  ex- 
tremely susceptible  to  the  sound  of  music.  In  infants 
and  animals  the  lack  of  intellectual  elements  in  the  effect 
cannot  be  doubted. 

Despite  the  evident  lack  of  intellectual  content  in 
music,  all  literature  is  full  of  reference  to  its  emotion- 
ality. But  how  can  there  be  genuine  emotion  without 
a  previous  idea  of  some  kind  to  rouse  it  ?  If  I  meet  a 
person  on  the  street  laughing,  he  will  immediately  take 
pleasure  in  telling  me  the  idea  that  caused  his  laughter. 
If  he  cannot,  I  may  be  sure  he  is  suffering  from  hysteria, 
a  nervous  disease.  If  I  turn  to  my  neighbour  at  the 
concert  while  Schumann's  "  Traumerei"  is  being  played 
by  the  orchestra,  or  on  the  piano,  and  ask  her  why  she 
looks  so  dreamy  and  lost  in  revery,  she  will  reply,  "  Oh, 
it's  the  music  !  "  She  has  no  intellectual  basis  for  her 
state  of  mind. 

This  is  all  the  more  striking  that  when  you  ask  for 
some  intellectual  equivalent  of  this  emotional  state,  no 
two  persons  will  likely  give  the  same  reply.  If  I  tell  an 
affecting  incident,  all  those  who  hear  are  stirred  by  the 
same  emotion, — pity,  compassion,  indignation,  rage,  as 
the  case  may  be ;  the  only  apparent  difference  is  in  the 
degree  of  feeling.  But  if  I  play  a  musical  composition, 
the  impressions  made  will  be  as  various  as  the  individuals 
composing  the  audience.  Helmholz  in  his  great  work, 
u  On  the  Sensations  of  Tone,"  expresses  this  confusion 
well :  "  When  different  hearers  endeavour  to  describe  the 
impression  of  instrumental  music,  they  often  adduce 
entirely  different  situations  or  feelings  which  they  sup- 
pose to  have  been  symbolized  by  the  music."  Gurney 
also  recognized  this  difficulty :  "  Music  is  perpetually  felt 


24  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

as  strongly  emotional  while  defying  all  attempts  to 
analyze  the  experience  or  to  define  it  even  in  the  most 
general  way  in  terms  of  definite  emotion."  By  general 
consent  we  seem  to  have  reached  here  a  psychological 
impasse. 

Now,  I  am  not  a  physiological  psychologist,  have  made 
no  formally  scientific  investigation,  and  (what  is  worse  !) 
have  no  command  of  the  technical  vocabulary  in  which 
such  discussions  are  usually  expressed,  but  I  trust  my 
temerity  will  be  forgiven  if  I  seek  to  generalize  a  lifetime 
of  musical  impression  and  observation  into  a  contribution 
towards  the  solution  of  the  problem.  In  looking  over 
such  of  the  literature  on  the  subject  as  was  accessible  to 
me,  I  was  pleased  to  find  that  my  fundamental  conclusion 
had  been  anticipated  by  leading  thinkers,  for  it  gave  me 
courage  to  hope  that  the  conclusions  in  which  I  go  be- 
yond them  may  have  some  value. 

My  first  proposition,  that  music  appeals  to  and  directly 
affects  the  nervous  system,  is  quite  generally  accepted. 
Half  a  century  ago,  Gottschalk,  the  great  American  piano 
virtuoso,  formulated  the  same  idea  in  this  statement : 
11  Music  is  a  thing  eminently  sensuous.  Certain  combi- 
nations move  us,  not  because  they  are  ingenious,  but  be- 
cause they  move  our  nervous  system  in  a  certain  way." 
Bartholomew  in  his  u  Psychology  of  Music"  in  recogniz- 
ing its  truth,  remarks  :  "  Looking  at  the  nervous  system 
as  a  whole  we  see  here  a  mechanism  admirably  adapted 
for  receiving  and  transmitting  impulses  from  without  to 
the  soul  and  for  giving  expression  to  the  conceptions, 
emotions,  and  volitions  of  the  soul  in  the  various  muscu- 
lar movements."  Billroth,  in  his  very  suggestive  little 
book,  "  Wer  ist  musikalisch  ? "  carries  the  idea  a  step 
further.     In  the  extreme  stimulus  of  the  nervous  system 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  MUSIC  25 

caused  by  music,  the  nerve  centres  associated  with  other 
senses,  notably  that  of  sight,  are  so  moved  upon  that 
they  also  send  a  report  to  the  brain.  Out  of  this  nervous 
fact  noted  by  this  German  writer  has  grown  the  whole 
theory  of  the  correspondence  of  tone  and  colour.  Per- 
sons suffering  from  hyperesthesia  of  the  nerves  have  sup- 
posed themselves  more  gifted  than  their  fellows  in  being 
able  to  see  colours  when  they  hear  tones,  not  realizing 
that  it  was  a  morbid  result  of  disease.  Billroth  says  he 
heard  a  soprano  singing  sharp,  and  when  she  struck  B  in 
alt  a  quarter  step  too  high,  he  suddenly  felt  a  decayed 
tooth  throb  with  pain. 

The  effect  of  music  on  the  nervous  system  is  either 
depressing  or  exhilarating.  Soft,  quiet  major  music  has 
so  slight  a  depressing  effect  that  it  simply  calms  and 
soothes  the  nerves.  Slow,  heavy  music  is  very  depress- 
ing. Minor  music,  unless  its  natural  effect  is  neutralized 
by  rapidly  and  regularly  recurring  rhythm,  is  depressing. 
Major  music,  unless  modified  by  very  slow  rhythm,  or  by 
excess  of  discords,  exhilarates  the  nerves. 

The  exhilarating  or  depressing  effect  of  music  is  greatly 
modified  by  the  pleasing  or  irritant  quality  given  it  by 
means  of  rhythm  and  discords.  Rhythm,  except  when 
it  is  slow  and  heavy,  or  when  it  is  extremely  irregular, 
adds  a  pleasing  quality.  To  the  general  appeal  of  music 
to  the  sympathetic  nerves  it  adds  an  appeal  to  the  motor 
nerves.  The  irritant  quality  is  produced  by  irregular 
rhythm,  but  more  especially  by  discords.  This  irritant 
quality  gives  poignancy  to  the  depression  or  to  the  ex- 
hilaration, as  the  case  may  be. 

Shall  we  follow  the  Herbartean  school  of  psychology 
in  confining  the  effect  of  music  to  the  physical  system  ? 
Bartholomew  earnestly  protests  :     "  The  fact  is,  that  the 


26  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

physiological  element  is  not  the  whole  of  sound  experi- 
ence. There  is  something  higher  in  musical  sounds  than 
mere  sensuous  delight.  The  pleasure  of  music  is  not  all 
in  the  ear  any  more  than  beauty  is  all  in  the  eye.  We 
can  never  explain  Beethoven's  Ninth  Symphony  by  say- 
ing that  it  is  nothing  more  than  the  excitement  of  our 
nervous  system  by  means  of  external  sound  waves."  But 
if  "  the  physiological  element  is  not  the  whole  of  sound 
experience,"  what  is  there  beyond  ? 

My  second  proposition  seems  to  me  to  furnish  an  ade- 
quate reply  to  the  above  question  :  Music  produces  the 
same  general  effect  upon  the  nervous  system  through  the 
hearing  that  emotions  produce  through  the  mind.  The 
emotions  from  within  and  the  musical  impression  from 
without  affect  the  nerves  in  the  same  stimulating  or  de- 
pressing way.  Emotions  and  their  corresponding  mu- 
sical expressions,  therefore,  have  a  common  term  of  nervous 
effect.  On  the  one  hand  emotion  finds  in  the  common 
term  a  means  of  expressing  itself  either  by  creative  mu- 
sical composition  or  by  the  rendering  of  appropriate  music ; 
on  the  other  hand  music  will  suggest  through  that  com- 
mon term  some  related  emotion,  or  greatly  quicken  it  if 
already  awakened. 

Emotion  and  music  have  a  like  twofold  effect  upon  the 
nervous  system, — exhilarating  and  depressing.  Each  of 
these  two  effects  is  modified  by  the  pleasing  or  the  irri- 
tating quality  of  the  emotion  or  of  the  music.  The  vary- 
ing degrees  of  each  and  their  varying  alternation  in  music 
give  the  same  infinite  variety  of  impression  that  the  emo- 
tions make.  Grief  and  slow  irritant  music  have  approxi- 
mately the  same  depressing  result,  reducing  very  greatly 
the  rapidity  of  heart  action.  Courage  and  strongly 
and  steadily  rhythmical  music  are  alike  exhilarating,  and 


THE  CHAEACTEE  OF  MUSIC  27 

quicken  the  pulse.  Rage  and  tumultuous,  irregularly 
rhythmical  minor  music  filled  with  discords,  have  the 
same  poignantly  depressing  influence  on  the  nervous  sys- 
tem. We  could  take  the  whole  catalogue  of  emotions 
singly  and  in  combination  and  for  the  nervous  effect  of 
each  find  an  approximately  corresponding  musical  cause. 

In  this  common  term  of  nervous  effect  lies  the  connec- 
tion between  music  and  the  mind.  There  is  no  longer  a 
mere  sensuous  delight,  but  an  infinitely  varied  emotional 
exercise.  By  means  of  the  vague  suggestiveness  of  this 
common  term,  music  not  only  expresses  emotion,  it  re- 
produces, stimulates,  or  even  creates  it.  In  the  hands  of 
a  composer  of  genius  under  the  interpretation  of  a  leader 
of  equal  genius,  it  becomes  a  mighty  force,  shaping  and 
controlling  the  emotional  experiences  of  an  assembled 
multitude. 

On  investigation  it  will  be  found  that  many  emotions 
have  nervous  effects  so  nearly  the  same  that  it  is  difficult 
to  define  the  difference.  Tears  may  mean  pity,  but  they 
may  also  indicate  rage.  This  indeterminateness  of  the 
nervous  impression  produced  by  the  emotions  is  shared 
by  that  made  by  music.  Hence  the  correspondence  be- 
tween them  is  extremely  general  and  not  specific.  It 
simply  depends  on  the  degree  of  stimulation  or  depres- 
sion, of  nervous  pleasure  or  irritation.  A  given  compo- 
sition will  make  a  nervous  impression  approximately  the 
same  as  a  number  of  very  different  emotions  and  it  will 
depend  on  the  tendency,  bias,  or  habit  of  the  perceiving 
mind  which  of  these  emotions  will  be  suggested.  Here 
will  be  found  the  occasion  of  the  indeterminateness  and 
confusion  of  the  induced  or  secondary  emotion  roused  by 
music  and  of  its  varying  suggestiveness  to  different  indi- 
viduals.    A  sudden  discordant  clash  in  orchestra,  piano, 


28  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

or  organ,  will  simply  shock  the  nervous  system,  but  will 
suggest  to  different  people  a  murder,  an  explosion,  a 
battle,  a  vague  catastrophe,  a  fall,  bad  news,  etc.,  as 
either  of  these  would  have  produced  the  same  general 
nervous  impression. 

It  must  always  be  remembered  that  music  by  itself  can 
only  express  the  nervous  impression  made  by  an  emo- 
tion, not  the  fact  or  thought  that  waked  that  emotion, 
and  that  that  nervous  impression  is  vague  and  inde- 
terminate. The  feelings  roused  by  a  high  mountain,  by 
the  ocean,  or  by  a  thoughtful  survey  of  the  starry  sky, 
affect  the  nerves  so  nearly  alike  that  music  cannot  ex- 
press the  difference.  A  given  symphony  in  elevated 
style  might  well  be  called  The  Himalayan,  The  Ocean, 
or  The  Niagara  Symphony  without  any  incongruity  in 
either  case.  The  family  of  the  boy  Schumann  did  him  a 
grave  injustice  when  they  laughed  at  the  wild  lugubrious- 
ness  of  his  funeral  march  in  memory  of  his  dead  canary 
bird.  The  actual  effect  of  his  grief  over  the  death 
of  his  pet  on  the  nerves  of  the  boy  was  exactly  the  same 
as  that  which  would  be  made  on  those  of  mature  persons 
by  grief  over  the  loss  of  a  near  relative  or  friend.  Music 
cannot  distinguish  between  the  death  of  a  canary  bird 
and  that  of  a  mother. 

Here  is  the  weakness  of  program  music.  In  their  ef- 
forts to  define  the  musically  indefinable,  modern  com- 
posers have  descended  to  mechanical  tricks  and  mimetic 
passages  that  are  not  music.  When  it  becomes  baldly 
descriptive  it  is  no  longer  music,  but  more  or  less  skillful 
mimicry  or  sleight  of  hand.  When  Beethoven  introduced 
into  his  Pastoral  Symphony  the  note  of  the  cuckoo,  he 
explained  to  a  friend  that  he  did  it  as  a  joke.  Richard 
Storrs  Willis  says  regarding  this  phrase  of  the  symphony, 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  MUSIC  29 

11  Beethoven  for  a  moment  ceases  to  be  Beethoven  to  be 
a  cuckoo  ;  and  in  cuckoo  music,  the  cuckoo  herself  is  cer- 
tainly the  better  musician  of  the  two."  When  Wagner 
makes  the  orchestra  sway  to  the  fluttering  of  Isolde's 
scarf,  he  is  out  of  the  realm  of  music,  striking  though  the 
effect  may  be.  Sound  is  music  only  when  its  nervous 
impression  has  relation  to  a  nervous  effect  produced  by  a 
feeling. 

Helmholz  recognizes  the  true  relation  of  music  and 
emotion  when  he  says  :  "  Music  does  not  represent  feel- 
ings and  situations,  but  only  frames  of  mind  which  the 
hearer  is  unable  to  describe  except  by  adducing  such  out- 
ward circumstances  as  he  has  himself  noticed  when  ex- 
periencing the  corresponding  mental  states."  The  mind, 
being  conscious  of  the  effect  upon  the  nerves  of  a  given 
musical  rendering,  is  stirred  by  vague,  almost  physical 
memories  of  similar  nervous  impressions  made  by  emo- 
tions. This  secondary,  reminiscential  emotion,  a  very 
faint  reverberation  of  past  emotional  experiences,  seeks  a 
definite  intellectual  basis.  This  stimulates  the  mental  ac- 
tion and  develops  responsiveness  to  outside  suggestion. 
Here  is  the  great  opportunity  for  the  prefatory  or  cotem- 
porary  comment  or  for  the  text  which  accompanies  the 
music.  It  is  evident  that  when  music  is  accompanied  by 
a  definite  statement  appealing  to  the  thought,  imagina- 
tion, desire,  or  sensibility,  creating  an  emotional  nervous 
impression  corresponding  to  it,  the  composite  impression 
is  much  deeper  than  either  alone  would  make.  Indeed, 
it  is  greater  than  their  sum,  because  each  intensifies  the 
action  of  the  other. 

The  emotion  is  intensified  by  the  music,  and  the  music 
is  made  more  expressive  and  pleasing  by  the  emotion. 
It  follows  that  wherever  it  is  possible  to  make  the  emo- 


30  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

tional  and  the  musical  impression  upon  the  nervous  sys- 
tem practically  to  coincide,  music  may  be  used  to 
strengthen  the  corresponding  emotion  on  the  subjective 
and  to  express  it  on  the  objective  side. 

This  stimulating  effect  of  music  upon  the  nervous  or- 
ganization quickens  the  action  of  the  brain  and  prepares 
it  for  any  work  that  is  to  be  subsequently  asked  of  it. 
Gustavus  Adolphus  may  not  have  known  the  philosophy 
of  his  course,  but  he  acted  like  a  wise  general  in  sending 
the  soldiers  of  his  army  into  battle  singing  their  great 
Reformation  chorals. 

In  this  indefiniteness  of  nervous  impression  and  the 
eagerness  of  the  mind  to  find  a  positive  intellectual  basis 
for  the  induced  feeling,  lies  the  power  of  associated  ideas. 
The  memory  will  call  up  a  definite  idea  which  in  any  way 
has  been  clearly  associated  with  a  nervous  excitation  much 
more  easily  and  quickly  than  it  will  an  emotion.  Once 
get  a  definite  relation  established  between  the  nervous 
effect  produced  by  a  given  style  of  music  and  a  given  idea 
and  the  former  will  inevitably  suggest  the  latter.  Here 
lies  the  explanation  of  the  somewhat  curious  preposses- 
sion or  prejudice  of  musicians  and  others  for  or  against 
certain  classes  of  music,  composers,  and  even  publishers. 
Without  giving  the  cause  Gurney  recognizes  the  fact : 
"  Another  common  source  of  misconception  is  the  very 
natural  habit  of  judging  music  in  connection  with  words 
and  scenes  to  which  it  has  been  made  an  adjunct.  .  .  . 
While  we  call  certain  tunes  vulgar  in  the  first  instance, 
perhaps  from  their  vulgar  concomitants,  and  even  after 
abstracting  them  from  these,  feel  no  inclination  to  recall 
the  term,  seeing  how  trivial  and  fleeting  is  any  pleasure 
they  are  capable  of  giving,  we  may  still  perceive  that  they 
often  do  give  a  certain  pleasure  to  children  and  to  adults 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  MUSIC  31 

of  small  musical  development  who  show  no  inclination  to 
vulgarity  in  other  ways.  .  .  .  We  have  no  ground  to 
consider  them  vulgarizing  to  the  moral  character,  any 
more  than  a  taste  for  bad  puns,  or  for  garlic,  which  are 
relished  by  numbers  of  most  moral  people."  This  differ- 
ence of  the  effect  of  music  upon  people  of  high 
general  culture  and  upon  musically  sophisticated  per- 
sons, lies  very  largely  in  the  established  association  of 
ideas. 

This  relation  between  the  associated  idea  and  the  effect 
of  the  music  explains  the  influence  of  musical  critics,  and 
how  comparatively  uncultivated  persons  of  conventional 
habits  of  mind  seem  to  be  able  to  take  pleasure  in  the 
extremely  complicated  and  advanced  music  recommended 
to  them.  It  also  explains  why  a  certain  hymnal  editor 
who  found  "  Lux  Benigna  "  frivolous  and  sensuous  when 
he  found  it  in  three-four  time,  thought  it  entirely  digni- 
fied and  churchly  when  it  was  brought  to  him  in  three- 
two  time.  The  open  heads  of  the  half  and  whole  notes 
actually  had  a  determining  effect  upon  the  nervous  im- 
pression the  music  made  upon  him.  Much  that  passes 
as  high  and  exclusive  culture  is  based  on  these  mechan- 
ically associated  ideas  that  have  no  real  relevancy  to  the 
music  itself. 

The  correspondence  between  the  nervous  effects  of 
music  and  of  the  emotions  is  emphasized  in  other  ways.  Dr. 
McCosh  in  his  work  on  "  The  Emotions  "  recognizes  the 
therapeutic  value  of  working  on  the  emotions  in  some 
classes  of  disease ;  on  exactly  the  same  lines  of  treatment, 
and  affecting  the  health  of  the  body  in  exactly  the  same 
manner,  musical  therapy  has  been  strongly  urged.  Strong 
emotions  often  induce  visions  and  hallucinations  in  pecul- 
iarly susceptible  people ;  persons  of  like  nervous  constitu- 


32  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

tion  with  vivid  imaginations  are  somewhat  similarly  af- 
fected by  brilliant  or  dreamy  music. 

This  correspondence  between  the  impression  of  the 
music  and  of  the  emotions  upon  the  nervous  system  ex- 
plains why  any  incongruity  between  them  is  so  unpleas- 
ant. To  sing  the  noble  Long  Meter  Doxology  to  a 
frivolous  rhythmical  melody, — or  to  a  tender  and  plain- 
tive tune, — makes  two  antagonistic  nervous  impressions 
and  produces  actual  nervous  distress.  The  pain  a  grief- 
stricken  person  feels  in  hearing  cheerful  music  is  actually 
physical,  as  well  as  mental. 

This  painful  sense  of  nervous  discord  will  affect  persons 
in  direct  proportion  to  their  nervous  susceptibility  to 
music.  Individuals  whose  nervous  sensitiveness  has  been 
developed  by  general  culture,  or  by  wide  opportunities 
for  hearing  expressive  music,  will  be  more  affected  by 
such  incongruities  than  coarse,  untutored  persons.  In 
uncultivated  communities  it  is  possible  to  sing  the 
doxology  to  "  Duane  St."  in  a  rapid,  rhythmical  manner 
without  a  bad  effect,  partly  because  the  people  are  not  alive 
to  the  nervous  dissonance  produced,  partly  because  that 
dissonance  is  submerged  by  the  exhilaration  caused  by  the 
rhythm  and  the  general  participation.  Gurney  recognizes 
this  fact  when  he  says  :  "  The  love  of  coarse  and  violent 
sound  is  connected  with  the  mere  love  of  violent  stimula- 
tion and  manifests  the  exceptional  way  in  which  stimula- 
tion of  the  auditory  way  overflows  into  the  general 
nervous  system." 

Just  as  persons  who  have  inherited  keen  moral  sensibil- 
ities sometimes  develop  a  sensitiveness  of  conscience 
that  is  painful  to  themselves  and  a  serious  restraint  to 
their  practical  activities,  as  well  as  a  bar  to  their  associa- 
tion with  average  people  in  securing  practical  political  or 


THE  CHAEACTEE  OF  MUSIC  33 

municipal  reforms,  so  occasionally  musical  people  develop 
such  a  nervous  sensibility  that  they  feel  incongruities  not 
apparent  even  to  the  cultivated  people  about  them.  In 
such  cases  susceptibility  degenerates  into  mere  irritabil- 
ity. I  hardly  need  to  say  that  there  is  nothing  really 
admirable  in  such  morbid  sensitiveness,  nor  trustworthy 
in  its  judgments. 

There  is  frequently  a  sense  of  nervous  dissonance 
among  persons  whose  emotions  or  feelings  have  an  im- 
proper intellectual  basis.  The  person  who  associates  ex- 
clusively elevated  and  dignified  feelings  with  church 
work,  and  only  light,  frivolous  ideas  with  rhythmical 
music  will  feel  nervous  dissonances  in  average  church 
music  due  to  improper  coordination  of  nervous  impres- 
sions. 

Of  course,  there  is  an  intellectual  side  to  music  as  well, 
but  only  as  the  mind  observes  and  analyzes  the  impres- 
sions made  upon  the  nervous  system.  The  material  of 
music  may  be  studied  in  a  formal,  abstract  way.  Musical 
compositions,  like  some  of  Bach's  fugues,  may  be  written 
by  sheer  mental  force,  showing  great  ingenuity  and  extra- 
ordinary mechanical  command  of  the  technical  resources 
of  music ;  but  they  are  mere  puzzles,  mere  studies  in 
organized  noises,  not  music.  While  such  compositions 
impress  the  nervous  system,  of  course,  those  impressions 
do  not  coincide  with  any  emotional  impressions,  and  un- 
less stimulated  by  purely  intellectual  interest  based  on 
technical  knowledge,  the  nerves  are  soon  wearied  and 
deadened. 

Since  music  is  based  on  mere  nervous  impressions,  it 
can  have  no  inherently  moral  value.  Men  who  wish  to 
introduce  the  artistic  conception  of  church  music  into 
our  more  ambitious  churches  in  the  form  of  elaborate 


34  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

quartets,  solos,  and  organ  music,  and  who  often  strive  to 
displace  Sunday  evening  service  with  miscellaneous  pro- 
grams of  music  and  sacred  concerts,  often  urge  the  moral 
influence  of  music.  The  only  cultivating  influence  music 
exerts  is  to  refine  and  sensitize  the  nerves ;  but  that  may 
prepare  the  way  for  a  more  exquisite  selfishness,  for  a 
more  delicate  sensuality,  for  a  more  dainty  worldly- 
mindedness,  as  well  as  for  a  more  noble  life.  The  old 
German  rhyme, 

"Wo  man  singt  da  lass  dich  ruhig  nieder, 
Boese  Menschen  haben  keine  Lieder," 

has  more  geniality  than  truth.  It  will  do  as  a  rhetorical 
sentiment  when  referring  to  music,  but  hardly  as  a  rule  in 
actual  dealings  with  human  nature. 

The  truth  of  the  matter  is  that  music  in  itself  is  neither 
religious  nor  irreligious,  neither  moral  nor  immoral.  By 
mental  association  certain  styles  of  music  may  come  to  be 
recognized  as  religious,  just  as  Wagner  in  his  later  operas 
so  connected  certain  phrases  with  certain  persons,  objects 
or  places,  as  to  call  each  to  the  memory  of  the  hearer 
when  its  corresponding  phrase  appeared  in  the  music. 
Even  then,  aside  from  the  mere  mental  suggestion,  it  may 
have  no  religious  value.  It  is  only  as  it  is  associated 
with  religious  ceremonies  and  environments,  or  is  ac- 
companied by  religious  poetry, — the  expression  of  relig- 
ious emotion, — or  by  definite  statements  of  religious  truth, 
that  it  secures  religious  value  and  influence.  The  moral 
influence,  the  ethical  or  religious  force,  must  be  injected 
from  without,  for  in  itself  it  has  no  moral  or  religious 
power.  An  organ  recital  may  be  very  refining  to  the 
sensibilities  and  add  to  one's  culture  and  capacity  for  en- 
joyment, but  it  has  no  moral  or  religious  value,  no  mat- 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  MUSIC  35 

ter  how  solemn  or  impressive  its  strains  may  be.  A 
religious  concert  may  be  the  reverse  of  religious  in  its  in- 
fluence, if  the  texts  used  have  no  clearly  religious  value 
and  if  the  motive  of  the  musicians  is  personal  display, 
whether  of  superior  technical  skill  or  of  high  musical 
culture,  and  if  the  hearer  simply  takes  personal  pleasure 
and  delight  in  the  music. 

The  human  mind  in  its  legitimate  and  worthy  efforts 
reaches  out  in  five  different  directions — after  truth  in 
science,  philosophy,  and  general  scholarship ;  after  prac- 
tical utilities,  personal  and  altruistic ;  after  beauty  in  all  its 
forms  and  phases ;  after  things  moral  in  life  and  conduct, 
particularly  in  the  relation  between  man  and  man ;  and 
after  things  religious  in  the  relations  between  man  and 
the  Great  Supreme  Being. 

The  absolutely  symmetrical  mind  reaches  out  in  all 
these  directions  with  an  energy  proportionate  to  their 
several  importance.  But  the  average  mind  is  not  com- 
plete and  symmetrical.  Some  men  pursue  knowledge 
and  have  little  or  no  regard  for  its  practical  results,  its 
artistic  values,  its  moral  influences,  or  its  relation  to  God. 
Others  esteem  truth,  beauty,  moral  influence,  or  religious 
feeling  only  as  they  produce  practical  results.  Some 
men  are  artists  only,  and  have  no  immediate  interest  in 
science,  in  practical  life,  in  morals,  or  in  religion.  In 
fact,  the  greater  the  tendency  to  emphasize  the  one 
category,  and  the  larger  the  talent  or  genius  a  person 
possesses  for  that  phase  of  human  endeavour,  the  more 
certain  will  it  be  that  the  others  will  be  ignored  or  even 
antagonized. 

This  explains  why  the  intensely  artistic  and  equally 
intensely  religious  David  could  be  guilty  of  immoralities 
that  would  shut  him  out  of  decent  society  in  these  days. 


36  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

It  also  solves  the  mystery  why  some  severe  moralists 
seem  to  have  so  little  use  for  religion,  and  so  many  more 
have  no  appreciation  of  art.  If  Byron,  whose  defiant 
immoralities  scandalized  the  world,  wrote  verses  whose 
moral  beauty  is  inspiring,  or  Liszt  wrote  solemn  masses 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  no  attractive  woman  was  safe 
under  his  influence,  it  is  because  these  things  are  pri- 
marily and  essentially  beautiful  and  only  incidentally 
moral  or  religious.  If,  as  in  Byron's  adventures  of  Don 
Juan,  and  Wagner's  Tristan  and  Isolde,  the  immoral 
furnishes  phases  of  beauty,  these  artists  are  just  as  free 
to  give  the  full  power  of  their  genius  to  its  expression. 
The  beautiful  is  the  all-important  matter  with  the  ex- 
clusively artistic  soul.  The  moral  or  immoral  is  subordi- 
nate and  of  value  only  as  it  serves  to  strengthen  the 
appeal  to  the  sense  of  the  beautiful. 

But  this  lack  of  harmony  between  devotion  to  the 
beautiful  and  devotion  to  the  moral  and  religious  is  made 
still  more  striking  by  the  fact  that  they  appeal  to  entirely 
different  functions  of  the  human  mind.  Beauty  appeals 
to  the  selfish  sensibilities.  This  is  true  even  in  its  sympa- 
thetic and  tender  appeals.  Morality  is  essentially  altru- 
istic and  is  a  matter  of  will  and  character.  There  may 
be  exquisite  sensibility  and  little  force  of  character. 
There  may  even  be  intense  appreciation  of  moral  beauty 
and  yet  moral  character  be  entirely  wanting. 

So  far  from  music  itself  having  a  moral  value,  its 
exclusive  pursuit  is  actually  demoralizing  !  Its  funda- 
mental appeal  is  physical.  It  increases  nervous  suscepti- 
bility until  it  becomes  irritability.  Acting  on  the  nerves 
in  a  way  analogous  to,  if  not  corresponding  with,  the 
effects  of  stimulating  and  narcotic  drugs  like  opium  or 
Indian  hemp,  it  occasionally  produces  neurotic  effects 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  MUSIC 


37 


similar  in  kind  if  not  in  degree.  If  the  reader  will  review 
the  irritable  musicians  of  his  acquaintance,  he  will  find 
more  or  less  evident  examples.  Physicians  occasionally 
forbid  musical  study  to  neuropathic  children.  It  empha- 
sizes the  sensibilities  at  the  expense  of  the  will.  It 
makes  musical  enjoyment,  the  gratification  of  one's 
musical  sensibilities,  the  chief  object  in  life.  It  is  there- 
fore selfish  in  tendency,  and  the  mental  attitude  thus 
taken  makes  more  powerful  the  appeal  of  other  desires 
and  passions. 

But  when  music  or  any  other  art  is  recognized  as  sub- 
ordinate to  moral  or  religious  ends,  then  it  becomes  a 
moral  factor  of  great  value.  Instead  of  the  selfish  grati- 
fication of  the  desire  for  artistic  development,  it  is  made 
to  serve  high  moral  and  religious  ends.  What  was  a 
narrowing,  debilitating,  misleading  master  becomes  a 
servant  of  rare  value  and  power,  simply  because  it  takes 
its  natural  and  proper  place  in  the  activities  of  the 
human  mind  and  heart.  Good  Papa  Haydn,  counting 
his  paternosters  on  his  rosary  before  beginning  compo- 
sition, may  not  have  been  so  great  a  musician  as  was 
Wagner,  who  surrounded  himself  with  all  things  beau- 
tiful and  was  clad  in  gorgeous  raiment,  but  he  was  in- 
comparably the  truer  and  greater  man. 


II 

HOW  CHURCH  MUSIC  ASSISTS 

IN  my  general  introduction  I  uncovered  what  seemed 
to  be  the  weakness  of  the  usual  thinking  about  the 
use  of  music  in  church  work.  I  promised  there  to 
take  up  the  difficulty  further  on  and  to  solve  it  as  far  as 
I  was  able.  Perhaps  now  that  we  have  studied  together 
the  essential  character  of  music,  we  are  ready  for  such 
an  investigation. 

In  the  introduction  I  found  that  the  final  purpose  of 
the  use  of  music  in  the  church  was  clear  enough — the 
edification  of  believers  and  the  persuasion  of  the  unsaved. 
It  was  also  recognized  that  the  use  of  music  furthered 
this  purpose  by  appealing  to  the  sensibilities  of  both 
classes  of  persons.  But  how  its  appeal  to  the  feelings 
could  secure  these  moral  and  spiritual  effects,  especially 
in  view  of  the  inherent  lack  in  music  of  the  moral  and 
religious  elements,  bade  us  pause.  From  our  study  of 
the  character  of  music  in  the  preceding  chapter,  we  are 
now  prepared  to  reply  :  Music  assists  in  religious  work, 
first,  by  preparing  the  hearer  nervously  and  physically 
for  the  emotion  to  be  roused  by  the  service  or  address ; 
second,  by  stimulating  the  nervous  action  produced  by 
emotions  already  secured  and  so  increasing  their  power 
over  the  volitions  ;  third,  by  satisfying  the  nerves  and  the 
mind  by  a  musical  expression  corresponding  to  the  nerv- 
ous impression  made  by  the  emotions  of  the  mind ;  and 
fourth,  by  assisting  in  the  awakening  of  emotions  con- 

38 


HOW  CHUKCH  MUSIC  ASSISTS  39 

nected  with  natural  interests  and  affections  which  shall 
then  be  transferred  to  and  associated  with  spiritual  ideas 
and  objects. 

Probably  I  can  make  myself  better  understood  and  can 
clear  up  the  difficulty  more  fully  by  taking  up  in  a  more 
concrete  way,  item  by  item,  step  by  step,  the  different 
ways  in  which  music  assists  the  religious  worker  in  secur- 
ing this  high  end. 

As  I  have  already  brought  out  at  length,  the  first  ap- 
peal of  music  is  to  the  physical  being.  According  to  its 
character,  it  exhilarates  and  excites  or  calms  and  de- 
presses. This  physical  effect  stimulates  the  mental  ac- 
tion, increases  the  psychical  responsiveness  and  creates 
what  might  be  called  physical  interest.  It  is,  therefore, 
not  to  be  despised,  but  to  be  recognized  as  having  funda- 
mental value  and  as  demanding  earnest  cultivation.  To 
depreciate  and  scoff  at  it  is  to  convict  one's  self  of  sheer 
ignorance  of  the  workings  of  the  human  mind. 

With  some  kinds  of  gatherings,  such  as  shop  meetings, 
street  meetings,  mission  and  rural  services,  it  is  about  all 
that  at  first  can  be  done  with  music.  But  even  this  is 
well  worth  the  doing  preparatory  to  later  results.  Even 
in  mission  Sunday-schools,  in  popular  revival  campaigns, 
in  great  miscellaneous  popular  religious  conventions  and 
conferences,  this  merely  physical  and  psychical  effect  will 
be  indispensable.  The  "  Glory  Song  "  has  probably  suc- 
ceeded, and  been  valuable  in  thousands  of  great  meetings, 
by  virtue  of  its  producing  this  nervous  result,  rather  than 
by  any  direct  spiritual  influence  it  has  exerted. 

That  music  gives  pleasure  every  one  recognizes.  The 
mere  physical  sensation  is  delightful.  The  symmetry 
and  unity  of  the  diverse  elements  of  melody,  harmony, 
and  rhythm  interest  the  intellectual  faculties.     The  vague 


40  PRACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

recalling  of  emotion  felt  in  the  indefinite  past  is  still  an- 
other element  of  pleasure.  This  appeal  to  the  funda- 
mental desire  for  pleasure  found  in  the  human  soul  at- 
tracts" many  persons  to  the  service,  whether  it  be  made 
by  the  beating  of  a  drum  on  the  open  streets  by  a  squad 
of  the  Salvation  Army,  or  by  the  playing  of  a  skillful 
organist  and  the  singing  of  an  artistic  quartet  in  a  wealthy 
church.  This  is  not  a  high  office  for  sacred  music  to 
perform,  but  it  is  entirely  legitimate,  if  it  is  merely  an  in- 
cidental result,  and  if  the  motive  for  securing  an  attend- 
ance is  the  proper  one. 

This  pleasure  in  the  hearing  of  the  music  has  another 
valuable  result :  it  predisposes  the  mind  of  the  listener  to 
consider  favourably  and  to  accept  readily  the  truth  and 
the  general  religious  impressions  the  other  exercises  of 
the  service  are  intended  to  convey.  There  is  more  hos- 
pitality of  mind,  more  accessibility  to  the  spiritual  mes- 
sage. Politicians  and  financial  promoters  fully  under- 
stand and  exploit  the  favourable  effects  of  such  an  intro- 
duction to  their  efforts  to  convince  and  win.  The  com- 
bined musical  and  gustatory  pleasures  of  a  banquet 
precede  the  speeches  and  addresses  that  give  the  key- 
note of  an  impending  campaign  or  explain  the  merits  of 
a  proposed  financial  venture. 

If  there  were  no  other  justification  of  the  organ  prelude 
and  the  opening  anthem,  its  influence  as  mere  music  in 
organizing  the  crowd  of  individuals  into  a  psychical  unity 
were  enough.  The  mere  fact  that  they  are  listening  to 
the  same  music,  are  having  a  common  experience,  creates 
a  composite  personality  that  becomes  an  induction  coil 
intensifying  the  current  of  feeling  that  is  to  flow  to  the 
individual  listener.  The  sooner  this  impression  common 
to  all  is  made  and  the  deeper  that  impression  is  made, 


HOW  CHURCH  MUSIC  ASSISTS  41 

the  more  powerful  is  the  common  and  the  individual 
responsiveness.  The  more  powerful  the  opening  impres- 
sion,— unless  it  comes  as  a  violent  shock, — the  more 
closely  are  the  bonds  of  unity  knit.  The  opening  music, 
therefore,  is  not  the  negligible  matter  it  is  usually  con- 
sidered to  be.  This  is  simply  one  of  the  many  phases  of 
the  psychology  of  the  mob  which  need  to  be  carefully 
studied  by  the  public  worker. 

Music  may  be  used  to  set  in  motion  and  so  to  make 
responsive  the  tract  of  the  sensibilities  in  which  lie  the 
particular  emotions  the  following  address  is  intended  to 
arouse.  The  mind  is  impressed  with  the  nervous  effect 
produced  by  the  music  and  responds  with  a  vague  con- 
tentless  emotion  that  demands  some  definite  tangible 
cause.  If  it  is  not  furnished,  the  mind  will  go  off  into 
fancies  and  dreams  and  reminiscences,  seeking  for  some 
object,  thought,  or  experience  justifying  the  nervous  im- 
pression and  the  induced  emotion.  If  the  mind  in  this 
eager  search  meets  the  appropriate  mental  impression  in 
the  succeeding  exercises  or  in  the  address,  the  welcome 
is  hearty  and  unreserved.  There  is  eager  attention  and 
complete  responsiveness  of  mind.  An  aggressively 
rhythmical  prelude  prepares  the  way  for  a  stirring  hymn 
of  decision  ;  the  effect  of  both  is  heightened  by  an  anthem 
full  of  life  and  vigour.  By  this  time  the  nerves  of  the 
hearer  have  been  exhilarated,  his  feelings  of  joy,  courage, 
and  aggressiveness  have  been  vaguely  roused  and  are 
clamouring  for  the  fitting  discourse  on  moral  reform, 
church  work  or  missionary  duty  which  will  justify  their 
activity.  The  recognition  of  the  fitting  cause  of  emotion 
so  fills  with  thought  and  purpose  what  had  been  a  mere 
indeterminate  feeling,  that  it  transforms  it  into  an  intelli- 
gent emotion  having  power  over  conscience  and  will.    It 


42  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

remains  for  the  speaker  to  fan  the  fire  already  burning  in 
the  soul,  a  vastly  easier  task  than  to  start  it. 

A  strong,  convincing  sermon  makes  a  deep  impression 
upon  the  emotions  of  the  hearer ;  those  emotions  in  turn 
affect  the  nervous  system.  Both  the  nervous  impression 
and  the  emotion  urgently  demand  an  articulate  expres- 
sion in  some  way.  When  opportunity  is  given  by  the 
playing  of  expressive  music,  by  a  solo,  or  an  anthem  by 
the  choir,  or,  better  yet,  by  an  appropriate  hymn  sung 
by  the  hearers  themselves,  the  emotional  result  of  the 
sermon  is  greatly  increased  and  intensified.  Indeed, 
where  the  address  has  appealed  chiefly  to  the  intellect, 
and  apparently  has  stirred  the  emotions  but  slightly,  the 
use  of  proper  music  will  often  bring  the  latent  emotion 
up  into  consciousness  and  increase  it  greatly.  This  emo- 
tionalizing of  an  abstract  discourse,  lacking  in  appeal  to 
the  feelings,  is  one  of  the  most  effective  offices  of  music. 

The  manner  in  which  music  produces  results  prepara- 
tory to  the  sermon,  and  its  intensification  of  the  sermon's 
effect,  has  been  dwelt  upon.  But  that  is  a  rather  narrow 
view  of  the  service.  Let  us  study  the  manner  in  which 
music  affects  what  is  to  be  a  worshipful  service. 

Worship  is  the  recognition  of  the  infinite  greatness 
and  perfection  of  the  Divine  Being,  an  emotion  of  awe 
and  reverence,  a  deliberate  act  of  the  will  subordinating 
itself  utterly  to  the  divine  will.  In  a  mind  given  to  ab- 
stract conceptions  free  from  emotional  realization,  there 
is  danger  that  so  great  an  idea  shall  have  no  emotional 
response.  Music  may  stimulate  this  flagging  emotion 
and  hence  we  open  our  service  with  a  slow,  massive  pre- 
lude that  shall  calm  and  depress  the  nerves  and  so  pre- 
pare the  mind  for  the  feeling  of  awe.  But  this  vague, 
oppressive    sensation    is   not   worship.      I    quote   from 


HOW  CHURCH  MUSIC  ASSISTS  43 

Richard  Storrs  Willis  a  passage  in  which  he  clearly  de- 
velops this  thought :  "  A  solemn  feeling  is  not  worship. 
Such  a  feeling  is  the  result  of  architectural  or  artistic 
causes.  A  person,  for  instance,  has  entered  a  cathedral; 
he  is  awed  by  the  grandeur  and  solemn  hush  of  the  place. 
He  yields  to  an  irresistible  feeling  of  solemnity  and  after- 
wards goes  away  and  feels,  perhaps,  as  though  he  had 
worshipped.  Not  so.  He  has  merely  indulged  in  what 
might  be  called  architectural  awe.  Such  a  feeling  is  a 
legitimate  effect  of  elevated  art.  The  place  and  the  su- 
preme object  of  worship  lie  higher  than  mere  architecture, 
or  music,  or  painting,  artistically  enjoyed,  can  bear  the 
soul.  For  in  the  enjoyment  of  natural  scenery,  we  are 
recipients ;  the  mind,  therefore,  is  in  a  passive  state. 
Whereas,  in  worship,  the  mind  is  in  an  active  state." 

Dr.  Dickinson  of  Oberlin  in  his  in  many  ways  very 
admirable  book,  "  The  History  of  Music  in  the  Western 
Church,"  falls  into  the  snare  of  purely  academic  thinking 
and  narrows  his  view  to  the  tastes  and  mental  interests 
of  his  own  scholarly  class.  Yet  at  the  last  he  does  recog- 
nize the  unmoral  and  applied  character  of  church  music 
and  states  it  very  clearly  :  "  Music,  even  the  noblest  and 
purest,  is  not  always  or  necessarily  an  aid  to  devotion, 
and  there  may  even  be  a  snare  in  what  seems  at  first  a 
devoted  ally.  The  analogy  that  exists  between  religious 
emotion  and  musical  rapture  is,  after  all,  only  an  analogy ; 
aesthetic  delight,  although  it  be  the  most  refined,  is  not 
worship;  the  melting  tenderness  that  often  follows  a 
sublime  instrumental  or  choral  strain  is  not  contrition. 
Those  who  speak  of  all  good  music  as  religious  do  not 
understand  the  meaning  of  the  terms  they  use.  For  de- 
votion is  not  a  mere  vague  feeling  of  longing  or  trans- 
port." 


44  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

At  the  close  of  a  majestic  prelude,  therefore,  the  con- 
gregation is  not  in  a  worshipful  attitude;  it  is  simply  op- 
pressed with  a  vague  feeling  analogous  to  awe.  Only  in 
so  far  as  the  time  and  place  suggest  to  some  individuals 
the  idea  of  the  Divine  Being,  may  there  be  the  begin- 
nings of  a  genuine  awe  and  reverence.  As  the  organist 
now  plays  over  Old  Hundredth  as  a  prelude  to  the  singing 
of  the  doxology,  the  words  are  remembered  and  the 
ideas  of  God  and  of  the  homage  due  Him  come  in  to 
give  definite  character  to  what  had  been  an  indefinable, 
passive  sensation,  and  begins  its  transformation  into  genu- 
ine awe  and  reverence.  As  the  hearer  joins  with  the 
rest  in  the  praise  and  adoration,  his  will  gives  its  assent 
to  the  exercise  and  at  last  he  is  actually  worshipping.  If 
the  following  invocation  is  sincerely  devout  and  expresses 
fitly  the  hearer's  feeling  and  purpose  it  deepens  the  emo- 
tions already  existing  in  the  heart. 

According  to  the  varying  personal  equation,  the  hearer 
is  now  prepared  for  the  hymn  that  follows.  It  may  be 
the  majestic  verses  of  Watts  : 

"  Before  Jehovah's  awful  throne, 

Ye  nations,  bow  with  sacred  joy ; 
Know  that  the  Lord  is  God  alone, 
He  can  create,  and  He  destroy." 

Here  the  feelings  of  majesty  and  awe,  prepared  for  by 
the  stately  prelude,  are  brought  into  definite  conscious- 
ness by  the  doxology,  are  deepened  by  the  invocation, 
and  find  stimulus  in  the  noble  character  of  the  words  of 
the  hymn,  in  the  elevation  of  the  music,  in  the  personal 
participation  in  the  singing,  and  especially  in  the  fact  of 
their  clear  expression.  An  appropriate  psalm  of  praise 
read  by  the  pastor,  or  read  responsively,  will  further  ac- 


HOW  CHUECH  MUSIC  ASSISTS  45 

centuate  the  devout  feeling  of  the  people  and  so  prepare 
the  way  for  the  culmination  of  worship  in  the  pastor's 
prayer.  The  music  has  furnished  only  the  nervous  prep- 
aration and  the  physical  emotion,  if  I  may  so  phrase  it, 
while  the  words  of  the  doxology,  the  invocation,  the 
hymn,  the  Scripture  reading  and  the  prayer  supplied  the 
intelligent  emotion.  The  music  has  prepared  the  way 
for  the  other  exercises  and  they  in  turn  have  intensified 
the  effect  of  the  music.  It  would  be  interesting,  it  even 
might  be  profitable,  to  attempt  a  series  of  studies  in  the 
nervous  and  emotional  development  of  a  service.  But  I 
refrain,  preferring  to  leave  each  minister  to  work  them 
out  for  himself  on  the  basis  of  the  resources  he  has  at 
hand. 

This  vagueness  of  the  nervous  impression  and  its  in- 
duced movement  of  the  sensibilities  can  be  made  very 
useful  in  the  substitution  of  related  emotions.  A  man's 
love  to  his  mother  and  to  his  Maker  are  very  closely  re- 
lated in  character.  The  nervous  impression  is  practi- 
cally the  same,  although  the  latter  may  have  (depending 
on  the  thoughtfulness  of  the  subject)  a  greater  degree  of 
depression,  due  to  the  greater  awe  involved.  If  we  wish 
to  develop  love  for  the  Divine  Being  in  an  unconverted 
person,  we  begin  by  appealing  to  his  filial  affection. 
Tender  and  soothing  music  may  precede  the  calling  up  of 
childish  reminiscences  or  the  touching  anecdote.  Or  a 
solo,  such  as  "  My  Mother's  Prayer,"  or  "  Tell  Mother 
I'll  be  There,"  in  which  music  cooperates  with  the  words 
in  making  a  nervous  and  an  emotional  impression,  will  be 
still  more  effective.  The  emotion  and  the  nervous 
response  to  this  fundamental  social  sensibility  having 
been  effective,  it  is  not  difficult  to  substitute  in  the 
hearer's  mind  the  idea  of  God  and  His  tender  providence 


46  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

for  the  idea  of  the  mother  and  her  loving  ministry.  It 
is  the  same  emotion,  the  same  nervous  key ;  there  is  the 
utmost  harmony  between  them,  and  the  substituted  idea 
is  given  the  full  benefit  of  the  original  appeal.  I  once 
sang  in  an  evangelistic  service  Bliss'  "  I  Know  Not  What 
Awaits  Me/'  prefacing  it  with  the  story  of  the  composer's 
tragic  death  at  Ashtabula,  and  emphasizing  the  uncer- 
tainty of  life.  This  was,  of  course,  a  slightly  veiled  but 
none  the  less  effective  appeal  to  the  fundamental  feeling 
of  the  fear  of  death.  As  I  sang  I  noticed  manifestations 
of  deep  feeling  on  the  face  of  a  young  man  whose  wife 
had  been  earnestly  praying  for  him  with  apparently  no 
result  and  who  had  just  come  home  that  day,  crossing  the 
high  bridge  over  the  Ohio  at  Bellaire  on  a  train.  After 
his  conversion,  which  occurred  before  the  service  closed, 
he  told  me,  "  As  you  sang  I  recalled  my  feelings  as  I 
crossed  the  bridge  over  the  Ohio,  and  I  thought,  what  if 
it  had  gone  down  with  me  as  the  Ashtabula  bridge  did 
with  Bliss  ?  "  The  song  simply  transferred  the  sympathy 
I  had  roused  in  him  for  Bliss  to  himself.  The  fundamen- 
tal personal  and  social  feelings  may  thus  be  spiritualized 
in  endlessly  varied  ways.  This  process  is  particularly  ef- 
fective in  dealing  with  the  unsaved,  but  is  just  as  avail- 
able in  work  among  believers. 

When  once  the  fact  is  clearly  recognized,  that  musical 
vibrations  directly  produce  corresponding  nervous  vibra- 
tions and  that  they  only  induce  vague  contentless 
emotions  in  the  mind,  our  thought  is  freed  from  a  host 
of  false  and  misleading  ideas  and  we  reach  a  firm  basis 
for  the  application  of  music  in  church  work.  To  confine 
it  to  purely  physical  and  at  best  psychical  limitations, 
may  seem  to  degrade  music,  but  such  is  not  the  case. 
The   results    of  pleasure,  of  infinite   expressiveness,   of 


HOW  CHURCH  MUSIC  ASSISTS  47 

transcendent  beauty  still  remain.  The  physical  and 
psychical  are  degraded  and  degrading  only  when  we  have 
made  them  so.  They  are  the  helpful  handmaidens  of 
the  spirit,  indispensable  to  our  highest  culture,  happiness 
and  character. 


Ill 

CHURCH  MUSIC  AN  APPLIED  ART 

IN  pursuing  our  study  of  the  character  of  church 
music  let  me  further  remark  that,  while  it  is  still 
art,  it  is  art  with  a  purpose.  That  purpose  is  so 
lofty  and  so  urgent  that  it  becomes  the  controlling  factor 
in  the  combination  and  dominates  the  whole  form,  char- 
acter and  content  of  the  music  used.  The  fixed  principles 
and  abstract  rules  of  pure  art  are  not  abrogated,  but  are 
subordinated  and  obscured  by  the  variable  concrete 
elements  the  purpose  introduces.  This  subordination 
prompts  the  leaders  in  every  field  of  artistic  effort, — 
literature,  music,  sculpture,  painting, — to  resent  the  in- 
troduction of  a  moral  or  other  purpose.  That  they  should 
resent  the  commercial  purpose  is  worthy  of  all  approba- 
tion, as  it  is  a  lower  motive  than  the  artistic  ;  but  as  moral 
and  religious  purposes  have  an  even  nobler  motive  than 
the  artistic,  the  constant  effort  to  eliminate  them  cannot 
be  justified.  It  is  a  false  pride  that  prevents  art  from 
being  the  humble  handmaid  of  morals  and  religion. 

If  the  religious  purpose  is  the  dominant  element  in 
church  music,  it  follows  that  in  its  consideration  there 
must  not  only  be  musical  knowledge  and  skill  and  taste, 
but  also  a  full  comprehension  and  appreciation  of  the  final 
end,  as  well  as  sympathy  with  it,  and  a  clear  insight  into 
the  artistic  limitations  thus  introduced.  The  musical 
critic  or  the  well-trained  musician  may  deserve  to  have 
his  opinions  quoted  as  authoritative  in  the  realm  of  pure 

48 


CHUECH  MUSIC  AN  APPLIED  ART  49 

musical  art  and  yet  have  no  standing  whatever  as  a  critic 
or  adviser  in  church  music,  if  he  has  had  no  religious  ex- 
perience, or  does  not  recognize  the  supremacy  of  the 
purpose  over  the  art,  or  does  not  comprehend  the  adapta- 
tions and  limitations  imposed  by  the  particular  people  to 
be  helped  or  by  the  circumstances  in  which  the  work  is 
to  be  done.  This  limitation  is  usually  overlooked  both 
by  the  musicians  themselves  and  by  the  church  workers 
they  advise,  although  it  is  just  as  true  in  other  lines  of 
applied  art.  The  historian  or  critic  of  artistic  architec- 
ture may  be  a  very  poor  architect  or  a  misleading  ad- 
viser in  practical  building.  Ruskin's  ideas  on  wall- 
paper or  on  chromo  Christmas  cards  would  probably 
have  been  anything  but  useful.  Yes,  I  accept  the 
parallel :  church  music  in  adapting  itself  to  actual  exigen- 
cies often  must  come  down  to  the  level  of  wall-paper  and 
Christmas  cards  ! 

If  the  controlling  factor  in  church  music  is  edification 
and  help,  then  the  mental,  moral  and  religious  condition 
of  those  to  be  edified  and  helped  becomes  an  essential 
element  in  its  development  and  application.  One  of  the 
most  difficult  phases  of  this  adaptation  is  the  realization 
that  the  work  of  the  church  includes  "  every  creature," 
and  that  its  music  must  reach  and  help  not  only  the  cul- 
tivated and  artistic,  but  the  rude  and  unlettered  as  well. 
This  is  all  the  more  peremptory  that  the  educated  and 
refined  classes  have  less  need  of  emotional  expression 
and  have  a  wealth  of  other  influences  and  resources  that 
the  masses  lack.  There  is  an  unconscious  selfishness  in 
many  cultivated  people  who  demand  that  all  music  must 
meet  the  requirements  of  their  own  natures.  As  Dr. 
Curwen  remarks  in  his  "  Studies  in  Worship  Music,"  re- 
garding the  music  of  the  Salvation  Army,  "  How  hard  it 


50  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

is  for  those  whose  natures  have  been  refined  by  lifelong 
culture  to  enter  into  the  feelings  of  an  agricultural  peas- 
ant or  a  cadger  of  one  of  our  larger  towns !  Things 
which  hinder  our  devotion  may  aid  theirs  ;  that  which 
shocks  us  may  attract  them  in  the  truest  sense." 

An  English  writer  referring  to  this  matter  of  adapta- 
tion puts  the  matter  in  a  nutshell :  "  True  science  is 
elastic.  It  is  half-science  which  is  rigid  and  hidebound 
and  unable  to  bend  to  circumstance.  If  we  once  have 
grip  of  the  living  principle,  we  can  venture  freely  on  its 
application  to  varying  occasions  !  " 

This  explains  why  Sir  George  Macfarren,  the  distin- 
guished English  conductor  and  composer,  broadened  his 
views  as  he  grew  older.  Early  in  his  career  he  held  the 
traditional  view  that  only  the  ancient  diatonic  style  of  har- 
mony should  be  used  in  church  music.  In  confessing  his 
error  he  said  :  "  I  reflected  not  that  men  in  church  were 
the  same  human  beings  as  the  same  men  at  home  or  at 
market  or  on  the  wayside.  I  failed  to  consider  that 
folks  thought  in  the  same  language,  felt  from  like  im- 
pulses, acted  from  similar  emotions  whether  they  were 
in  one  place  or  another,  whether  they  interchanged  ideas 
with  their  fellows  or  addressed  themselves  to  a  higher 
Being.  I  overlooked  the  profound  truth  that  to  be  sin- 
cere one  must  be  natural :  and  that  thus,  whatever  is 
assumed,  if  of  form  of  speech  or  of  melodious  tones  in 
which  to  declaim  it,  is  unnatural — artificial,  therefore, 
and  consequently  false  !  "  Here  is  clearly  expressed  the 
reason  for  the  adaptation  of  church  music  to  the  people 
it  is  intended  to  influence. 

One  of  the  difficulties  with  musical  idealists  is  that 
they  have  no  sense  of  the  value  of  spontaneity  and 
adaptation.     Music  is   music  to  them  whether   dealing 


CHURCH  MUSIC  AN  APPLIED  ART  51 

with  a  cathedral  congregation  in  an  ancient  clerical  com- 
munity or  with  the  illiterate  gamins  of  a  great  city.  But 
if  music  is  to  have  power  to  express  or  create  feeling  it 
must  have  regard  to  the  character  of  the  congregation 
whose  feeling  is  to  be  expressed  or  evoked.  If  it  is  not 
spontaneous  and  natural  to  the  people  using  it,  it  becomes 
forced,  perfunctory,  without  responsiveness  or  power. 
Music  must  be  "  catchy  "  in  a  higher  than  the  ordinary 
sense  of  the  word,  if  it  is  to  move  and  help  people. 

If  a  people  are  rude  and  unlettered  it  is  folly  to  intro- 
duce heavy  unrhythmical  tunes,  just  as  it  would  be  folly 
to  use  light  music  of  pronounced  rhythms  among  highly 
cultivated  worshippers  ;  indeed,  of  the  two  there  is  less 
danger  in  the  latter,  for  genuine  music  of  a  rhythmical 
character  appeals  to  certain  fundamental  feelings  of  even 
the  most  cultivated  persons  in  spite  of  their  sophisticated 
judgment.  Becoming  all  things  to  all  men  in  order  to 
save  some,  includes  this  adaptation  to  the  musical  need 
and  capacity  not  only  of  the  young,  but  of  the  less  culti- 
vated older  people,  and  justifies  this  position. 

Furthermore  if  church  music  is  applied,  not  ideal  art, 
and  is  shaped  and  moulded  by  extremely  varied  personal 
exigencies  and  resources,  then  it  gives  little  opportunity 
for  the  rigid  application  of  abstract  standards  of  music. 
Under  given  circumstances,  the  worst  thing  to  be  done 
may  be  the  use  of  the  best  music.  The  mechanical 
adoption  of  a  fixed  abstract  standard  of  music,  and  the 
rather  clamorous  insistence  upon  its  inflexible  applica- 
tion everywhere  and  among  all  classes  of  people,  have 
been  a  fertile  cause  of  religiously  ineffective  church 
music  in  this  country. 

The  mechanical  mind  dearly  loves  a  rule  or  a  formula. 
Education,  with  its  tendencies  to  abstraction  and  formu- 


52  PEACTICAL  CHUBCH  MUSIC 

lation,  only  hardens  this  mental  trait  into  a  habit.  A 
person  conscious  of  ignorance  of  the  principles  involved 
always  is  happiest  when  he  has  a  definite  precept  to 
obey.  It  calls  for  nothing  more  than  mechanical  appli- 
cation. But  the  rigid  application  of  formulae  in  the  ex- 
amination of  musical  compositions  to  be  used  in  church 
work,  or  of  fixed  rules  to  be  obeyed  in  its  rendition,  pre- 
vents the  pliability  and  adaptability  demanded  by  the 
extraordinary  variations  of  culture,  ability  and  resources 
in  our  churches,  if  the  real  object  of  church  music  is  to 
be  attained. 

It  will  be  seen  at  a  glance  what  room  this  two-sided 
nature  of  sacred  music  gives  for  difference  of  opinion  and 
attitude.  Vary  the  relative  emphasis  placed  upon  musical 
art  and  upon  religious  or  moral  purpose  and  the  resultant 
views  change  in  direct  proportion.  The  professional 
musician  employed  by  the  church  often  practically 
ignores  the  religious  ends  that  are  sought,  while  the  in- 
artistic, unmusical  minister  is  blind  to  the  value  of  artistic 
considerations  in  his  narrow  eagerness  for  religious  re- 
sults. Between  these  extremes  lies  a  great  variety  of 
conflicting  ideas.  Add  the  factor  of  blind  devotion  to 
tradition  and  historical  precedent  and  you  have  the  pre- 
vailing chaos  and  welter  of  views  and  opinions.  The 
necessity  of  a  clear  understanding  of  the  relative  impor- 
tance of  the  ideal  and  the  practical  sides  of  the  subject 
is  manifest.  Without  entering  into  a  further  discussion 
of  the  relative  weight  of  these  two  factors,  let  me  assume 
in  the  development  of  my  subject  that  the  religious 
purpose  is  supreme,  but  that  the  artistic  element  yields 
its  claims  for  consideration  only  when  hard  necessity 
marks  its  limits. 

So  far  from  these  two  elements  being  always  antag- 


CHUECH  MUSIC  AN  APPLIED  AET  53 

onistic,  church  music  is  at  its  best  when  they  cooperate 
most  intimately.  Art  gives  beauty  and  attractiveness  to 
religion  and  religion  gives  content  and  genuineness  to 
the  art.  Lot  and  Abraham  are  not  at  variance;  the 
contention  arises  between  their  servants. 

The  range  of  feeling  expressed  by  music  is  very  wide, 
from  a  mere  sense  of  physical  well-being  and  vital  force 
to  the  noblest  joyous  or  despairing  emotion.  It  may  ap- 
peal in  rhythm  only  to  the  motor  nervous  system,  it  may 
expressively  accompany  a  mere  statement  of  facts  as  in 
arithmetical  or  geographical  songs,  or  mere  narrative  as 
in  the  English  ballad,  or  it  may  swell  into  a  very 
storm  of  passion  as  in  the  Venusberg  scene  in  "  Tann- 
hauser  " ;  but  it  is  still  music  and  produces  its  nervous 
results. 

If  music  expresses  feeling  then  sacred  music  must  ex- 
press sacred  feeling.  Sacred  feelings  must  have  relation 
to  one's  apprehension  of  God  and  His  divine  attributes, 
to  our  praise  and  adoration  of  His  infinite  perfection,  to 
our  personal  relations  towards  Him  in  love  and  obedi- 
ence. These  sacred  feelings  also  take  in  our  moral  and 
religious  obligations  to  our  fellows.  Where  such  feel- 
ings are  purely  personal  and  individualistic,  their  expres- 
sion has  no  place  in  the  public  congregation,  where  only 
emotions  that  are  common  to  all  should  find  expression. 
With  this  limitation  all  religious  emotions  may  and  should 
find  conscious  voice. 

Let  me  emphasize  that  all  religious  emotions  should 
find  expression  in  church  music.  It  is  often  definitely 
asserted,  or  unconsciously  assumed,  that  all  music  used  in 
religious  work  must  be  solemn  and  stately  and  must  be 
restricted  to  praise  and  prayer.  That  praise  and  prayer 
should  constitute  a  large  part  of  public  worship  I  hope  to 


54  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

emphasize  again  and  again  ;  but  to  shut  out  the  musical 
expression  of  all  other  religious  emotions  were  to  deprive 
the  church  of  a  large  part  of  its  natural  and  divine 
heritage.  Many  of  these  feelings  are  not  sublime  or 
majestic  and  solemn  music  does  not  fitly  express  them. 
Many  of  them  actually  demand  music  full  of  life  and 
vigour,  i.  e.t  rhythmical  music. 

The  assumption  that  our  religious  music  must  always 
be  characterized  by  solemn  dignity  begs  the  whole 
question.  It  proves  that  the  objector  to  pronouncedly 
rhythmical  forms  has  a  very  limited  idea  of  the  range  of 
religious  feeling,  recognizing  only  as  a  truly  religious 
emotion  the  soul's  awful  sense  of  an  omniscient,  omni- 
present, unsearchable  Being,  throned  in  the  heavens. 
That  is  very  noble  as  far  as  it  goes,  but  a  pantheist,  a 
deist,  a  Mohammedan,  nay,  even  an  atheist  with  a  solemn 
realization  of  all-prevailing,  all-controlling  natural  law, 
can  claim  a  share  in  this  vague  devotion.  For  such  vague 
gropings  of  the  soul,  music  lacking  in  pronounced 
rhythm  is  a  fitting  expression. 

But  the  Christian  religion  furnishes  a  wider  range  of 
emotion  to  be  expressed.  Its  reverence  is  not  an  op- 
pressive pall,  but  cheerful  worship  and  rapturous  adora- 
tion, glad  thanksgiving  and  loyal  consecration.  Further- 
more, when  the  amazing  condescension  of  our  God  lifts 
us  out  of  the  realm  of  His  material  creation  into  com- 
panionship and  even  sonship,  what  would  have  been 
otherwise  the  impertinence  of  familiarity, — the  love  and 
devotion,  the  childlike  trust,  the  loyal  service,  the  fer- 
vent attitude, — in  a  word,  the  tender  intimacy, — becomes 
a  privilege  and  a  right.  These  Godward  emotions  can 
and  ought  always  to  be  solemn  and  reverent  and  it  would 
be  very  difficult  to  find  any  current  music  as  it  is  actually 


CHUECH  MUSIC  AN  APPLIED  AET  56 

sung, — not  as  it  may  be  perverted — which  approaches 
God  in  the  flippant  manner  so  frequently  alleged. 

But  the  devout  soul  has  its  relation  to  the  moral  world 
about  it,  to  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord  on  earth,  to  its  fel- 
low saints,  to  the  immortal  souls  who  have  not  yet  won 
the  immortal  hope.  Here  is  a  wide  scope  of  emotion 
that  has  an  equal  right  to  musical  expression.  Love  for 
truth  and  righteousness,  interest  in  the  advancing  king- 
dom of  Christ,  fellowship  with  the  saints  on  earth,  desire 
for  the  salvation  of  those  yet  outside  the  fold, — all  in- 
spire the  sanctified  heart  to  song  not  directed  towards 
God,  but  towards  the  hearts  and  lives  of  fellow  beings. 
The  impulse  to  help,  to  inspire,  to  persuade,  to  urge,  finds 
instinctive  expression  in  song  and  compels  its  purposeful 
use  for  practical  and  definite  ends.  The  solemn  dignity 
of  a  choral  does  not  serve  this  purpose,  for  these  are  not 
always  exalted  experiences.  In  so  far  as  these  impulses 
are  joyous  and  stirring,  rhythm  is  their  natural  expres- 
sion. The  march  movement,  which  can  be  so  effectively 
used  to  express  alike  exalted  triumphal  joy  and  the  pro- 
foundest  grief  for  the  dead,  is  entirely  in  place  in  giving 
voice  to  some  of  these  religious  feelings,  and  even  move- 
ments which  have  in  them  the  grace  and  joyousness  of 
the  waltz,  but  wanting  its  sensuousness,  may  occasionally 
have  their  place. 

Most  persons  objecting  to  rhythmical  music  of  this 
class  do  not  understand  in  what  spirit  or  tempo  it  is  to  be 
sung.  If  they  do,  they  are  guilty  of  dishonourably  mis- 
representing and  caricaturing  it  to  make  their  point.  A 
young  musician  spoke  on  church  music  in  a  recent  Sun- 
day-school convention  and  took  occasion  to  refer  to  the 
average  Gospel  song  as  "  rot "  !  To  illustrate  and  en- 
force his  point  he  played  Sankey's  most  cheaply  rhyth- 


56  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

mical  song, "  When  the  Mists  have  Cleared  Away,"  excess- 
ively rapidly  and  accentuated  the  rhythm  by  a  two-step 
accompaniment  in  his  left  hand,  producing  the  merest 
caricature  of  the  music.  When  the  director  of  the  music 
announced  that  same  song  at  the  conclusion  of  the  ad- 
dress and  had  the  people  sing  it  as  it  was  intended  to  be 
sung,  no  further  reply  to  the  young  musician's  attack  was 
necessary.  If  the  young  man  had  been  attending  Young 
People's  meetings  instead  of  playing  light  two-step  music 
that  made  dotted  eighths  and  sixteenths  suggest  frivolous 
music,  he  would  not  have  so  misrepresented  Sankey's 
song.  It  illustrates  well  the  fact  that  if  these  rhythmical 
movements,  as  used  in  popular  sacred  music,  have  de- 
grading associations,  the  perceiving  mind  has  passed 
through  the  degrading  places  where  they  are  found. 

When  a  man  has  once  learned  the  height  and  breadth 
of  a  complete  and  symmetrical  religious  experience,  and 
has  studied  the  needs  of  the  world  and  the  best  methods 
of  supplying  them,  no  matter  how  intellectual  he  may 
be,  or  how  refined  and  just  his  taste,  he  will  accept  the 
current  rhythmical  religious  music  in  its  best  manifesta- 
tions as  having  great  value  for  spiritual  and  religious 
uses.  He  may  seek  to  prevent  the  use  of  the  grosser 
forms  it  occasionally  takes,  but  will  not  discourage  by 
narrow-minded  criticism  the  faithful  and  successful 
workers  who  conscientiously,  with  great  ability,  and  often 
with  a  great  sacrifice  of  personal  musical  taste,  are  seek- 
ing to  promote  the  cause  of  Christ. 

But  sacred  music  is  not  only  the  expression  of  religious 
feelings  and  a  means  of  stimulating,  reproducing  and  creat- 
ing them,  but  also  a  vehicle  for  imparting  instruction, 
admonition,  or  encouragement.  "  Onward,  Christian 
Soldiers,"  "  Scatter  Sunshine,"  "  Yield  Not  to  Tempta- 


CHUECH  MUSIC  AN  APPLIED  AET  57 

tion,"  are  cases  in  point,  and  the  use  of  agreeable  and  ex- 
pressive rhythm  in  setting  them  to  music  is  entirely  con- 
gruous and  befitting.  This  class  of  hymns  and  songs 
is  large  and  makes  up  the  greater  part  of  the  Sunday- 
school  songs,  the  indiscriminating  denunciation  of  which 
is  so  common.  But  most  of  these  rhythmical  sacred 
songs  were  originally  written  for  children  and  young 
people,  who  respond  instinctively  to  rhythmic  measures. 
Even  if  the  use  of  rhythm  in  sacred  song  had  no  theoret- 
ical basis  justifying  it,  the  practical  need  of  adapting  the 
music  used  to  the  capacity  of  these  classes  would  be  a 
sufficient  reason  for  setting  aside  all  these  conventional 
and  ultra-fastidious  considerations. 

The  wise  minister,  with  his  eye  on  the  tangible  results 
found  in  the  spiritual  edification  of  believers  or  in  the 
transformation  of  the  life  and  character  of  unsaved  per- 
sons by  the  power  of  the  Gospel,  will  not  allow  himself  to 
be  confused  by  these  outcries,  but  will  study  musical 
effects  with  a  direct  reference  to  the  needs  of  his  own 
particular  congregation.  He  will  not  allow  his  artistic 
conscience  to  stifle  his  spiritual  conscience  nor  let  the 
pride  of  art  displace  his  sense  of  responsibility  for  souls. 
He  will  not  ask,  is  this  song  up  to  the  most  recent  Angli- 
can standards,  but  will  it  move  the  people  ?  He  will  not 
insist  that  in  every  anthem  every  beat  must  have  a  sepa- 
rate chord,  but  judge  whether  it  is  calculated  to  please  and 
then  inspire,  comfort,  or  even  instruct,  his  congregation. 
This  does  not  mean  that  he  shall  have  confused  or  vitiated 
artistic  standards.  Let  him  study  and  discriminate  ac- 
curately as  to  the  artistic  value  of  the  music  he  uses,  but 
only  be  sure  that  in  practical  work  those  artistic  conclu- 
sions take  a  subordinate  place. 


IV 

WHY  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC 

IT  is  difficult  to  understand  the  very  general  and  long 
continued  ministerial  indifference  to  church  music. 
La  Trobe  in  1831,  in  his  "  The  Music  of  the 
Church,"  laments  over  the  neglect  into  which  church 
music  had  fallen  in  his  day :  "  In  short,  so  glaring  is  the 
want  of  interest  manifested  towards  devotional  music, 
that  one  might  imagine  all  reasoning  upon  its  properties 
were  based  on  the  assumption  that  real  godliness  is  in  re- 
verse proportion  to  the  cultivation  of  sacred  song." 

Bishop  Beveridge  in  his  defense  of  the  singing  of 
psalms  indulges  in  what  was  possibly  unconscious  irony  : 
"  Some,  perhaps,  may  wonder  why  any  one  should  thus 
trouble  himself  about  so  low  and  mean  a  subject  as  this 
is  generally  thought  to  be.  But  I  think  nothing  mean 
that  hath  any  relation  to  the  service  of  God  and  His 
Church." 

The  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  a  liturgical  body, 
naturally  places  great  emphasis  on  sacred  music  as  it  is 
so  integral  a  part  of  its  noble  liturgy.  It  has  a  canon 
which  really  only  expresses  what  is  tacitly  recognized  in 
every  denomination  regarding  the  minister's  responsi- 
bility for  the  music  in  the  services  over  which  he  pre- 
sides. 

"  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  every  minister  of  this  church, 
with  such  assistance  as  he  may  see  fit  to  employ  from 
persons   skilled  in  music,  to  give  order  concerning  the 

58 


WHY  A  MINISTEE  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     59 

tunes  to  be  sung  at  any  time  in  his  church."  To  this 
canon  as  to  all  others,  the  candidate  for  ordination 
solemnly  promises  to  conform.  But  how  can  he  properly 
fulfill  his  vows  if  he  has  had  no  proper  training  to  fit  him 
for  this  responsibility  ? 

Here  and  there  is  a  musical  pastor,  who  by  native 
musical  gifts  and  tastes,  or  by  early  environment,  comes 
to  his  ministerial  work  with  some  sort  of  preparation  to 
use  the  musical  resources  of  his  congregation.  His  large 
success,  instead  of  stimulating  others  to  gain  a  like  power, 
is  nonchalantly  referred  to  his  peculiar  gifts  that  differ- 
entiate him  from  other  ministers.  There  is  even  an  oc- 
casional deprecation  of  it,  as  indicating  a  possible  weak- 
ness in  his  composition,  or  a  prejudiced  depreciation  of 
his  general  abilities,  such  as  men  of  consciously  scholarly 
inclinations  sometimes  manifest  towards  men  of  popular 
oratorical  powers.     Why  should  this  be  true  ? 

The  occasional  minister  who  studies  church  architec- 
ture, another  applied  art,  meets  no  such  critical  attitude. 
More  important  than  ecclesiastical  architecture  or  pic- 
torial or  plastic  art  is  church  music,  because  it  is  so  in- 
tegral and  unceasing  a  part  of  the  current  church  life, 
while  the  others  are  only  episodic  in  their  application. 
There  seems  to  be  no  good  reason  why  it  should  not 
have  a  place  in  the  minister's  interest  and  thought  second 
only  to  that  of  his  sermon. 

If  the  chief  end  of  man  in  general  is  to  glorify  God 
and  to  enjoy  Him  forever,  as  the  Shorter  Catechism 
teaches  us,  may  we  not  draw  the  inevitable  corollary  that 
such  is  the  peculiar  purpose  of  the  minister's  life  ?  The 
representative  and  ambassador  of  God,  the  intimate 
friend  to  whom  are  revealed  the  deep  things  of  spiritual 
privilege, — who  should  take  greater  delight  than  he  in 


60  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

praising  and  adoring  his  King  and  his  Friend  ?  He 
should  emulate  his  fellow  servants  in  heaven  who  con- 
tinually do  cry,  "  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  of  Sabaoth  !  " 
The  singing  of  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs 
should  be  no  mere  duty,  it  should  be  the  delight  of  his 
life.  Jonathan  Edwards  in  his  sermon  on  Self-examina- 
tion enforces  the  duty  of  singing  on  all  Christians.  "  As 
it  is  the  command  of  God  that  all  should  sing,  so  all 
should  make  conscience  of  learning  to  sing,  as  it  is  a 
thing  which  cannot  be  decently  performed  at  all  without 
learning ;  those,  therefore,  who  neglect  to  learn  to  sing 
live  in  sin  (the  italics  are  Edwards'  own),  as  they  neglect 
what  is  necessary  in  order  to  their  attending  one  of  the 
ordinances  of  God's  worship."  If  this  attention  to  sing- 
ing is  the  duty  of  all  Christians,  is  it  not  in  an  intensified 
degree  that  of  the  minister  to  whose  care  their  united 
praise  is  entrusted  ? 

In  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  there  was 
extraordinary  attention  paid  to  the  subject  of  church 
music.  Such  ministers  as  Mathers,  Edwards,  Dwight  of 
Woodstock,  Prince  of  South  Church,  Boston,  and  others 
preached  to  their  own  people  upon  it  and  exchanged 
pulpits  in  order  to  impress  their  several  congregations 
with  the  importance  of  the  matter. 

In  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  there  was  also 
quite  a  great  deal  of  interest  in  the  subject.  Thomas 
Hastings,  Nathaniel  D.  Gould,  Richard  Storrs  Willis  and 
others  wrote  valuable  books  emphasizing  the  religious  and 
practical  side  of  church  music.  Lowell  Mason,  Darius 
E.  Jones  and  George  J.  Webb  started  a  journal,  The 
Choral  Advocate,  to  create  a  wider  and  more  intelligent 
interest  in  the  music  of  the  churches,  and  leading  clergy- 
men supported  the  enterprise  with   influence  and   pen. 


WHY  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     61 

One  of  the  results  of  that  reform  movement  is  the  body 
of  American  church  tunes  that  have  been  so  productive 
of  good  not  only  in  this  country  but  in  England  and  in 
the  mission  fields  of  the  world. 

During  the  last  half  century  this  ministerial  interest  in 
the  practical  phase  of  the  subject  has  passed  away. 
What  interest  has  been  shown  has  been  historical, 
academic,  and  artistic.  The  whole  subject  has  practically 
been  handed  over  to  professional  musicians  and  popular 
leaders  of  song.  So  far  from  there  being  an  effort  to 
create  an  interest  in  church  music  among  young  minis- 
ters, it  often  occurs  that  older  ministers,  and  even 
professors  of  practical  theology  in  our  seminaries, 
advise  them  to  keep  their  hands  off  the  music  in 
their  congregations.  I  need  not  animadvert  upon 
the  cowardice,  the  caution  gone  to  seed,  of  such 
counsel. 

Have  you  ever  thought  how  Bible  history  is  pervaded 
by  religious  singing  ?  From  the  time  the  morning  stars 
sang  together  until  the  prevision  of  the  great  marriage 
supper  of  the  Lamb  where  John  heard  as  it  were  the 
voice  of  a  great  multitude,  and  as  the  voice  of  many 
waters,  and  as  the  voice  of  mighty  thundering,  saying, 
"  Alleluia  !  for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent  reigneth  !  "  the 
Bible  is  one  long  illustrated  song  service.  Again  and 
again  the  dreary  wilderness  of  detailed  ritual,  or  dry 
pedigree,  or  petty  history  of  petty  tribes  and  of  petty 
wars,  blossoms  out  into  an  oasis  of  song,  and  the  high 
palms  of  beauty  wave  over  the  refreshing  fountains  of  the 
songs  of  Miriam,  of  Deborah,  of  David's  lament  over 
Saul,  of  Hezekiah's  thanksgiving.  How  many  millions 
through  all  these  generations  have  laved  their  parched 
lips  at  the  sweet  waters  of  the  Psalms,  and  how  often 


62  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

those  who  drank  became  in  turn  living  fountains  to  bless 
and  comfort  succeeding  generations  ! 

Have  you  ever  stood  in  imagination  among  the  eager 
throngs,  when  all  the  men  of  Israel  assembled  themselves 
on  that  great  Dedication  Day  of  the  temple  of  Solomon, 
and  watched  the  orchestra  and  the  chorus  that  had  been 
organized  ?  And  did  you  note  that  as  the  trumpeters 
and  singers  were  as  one,  to  make  one  sound  to  be  heard 
in  praising  and  thanking  the  Lord,  and  when  they  lifted 
up  their  voices  with  the  trumpets  and  cymbals,  and  in- 
struments of  music,  and  praised  the  Lord,  saying,  "  For 
He  is  good,  for  His  mercy  endureth  forever,"  that  then 
the  house  was  filled  with  a  cloud,  even  the  house  of  the 
Lord :  so  that  the  priests  could  not  stand  to  minister  by 
reason  of  the  cloud :  for  the  glory  of  the  Lord  had  filled 
the  house  of  God  ? 

Let  us  stand  outside  the  upper  chamber  where  the 
solemn  mystery  of  the  Eucharist  is  being  instituted  and 
listen  while  the  men's  choir  sings  the  Paschal  Hymn  once 
more,  for  the  last  time  together,  as  a  doxology.  Do  we 
not  hear  the  voice  of  their  and  our  Master  leading  its 
strains  ?  With  the  cloud  of  the  Lord's  glory  in  the  an- 
cient temple  and  the  Master's  leadership  of  His  men's 
choir  on  the  eve  of  His  great  passion,  can  His  servant  be 
indifferent  to  the  importance  and  value  and  blessing  of 
sacred  song  ? 

Again  the  minister's  interest  in  music  should  be  stimu- 
lated by  the  fact  that  modern  music  is  the  child  of  the 
Christian  Church.  Out  of  the  meagre  unisons  and  un- 
organized recitatives  of  the  ancient  Jewish  music  and  the 
barren  modes  of  Grecian  sacred  and  secular  music,  the 
clergy  and  monks  of  the  early  Church  and  the  pious 
choral  leaders  and  organists  since  the  Middle  Ages,  have 


WHY  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     63 

evolved  the  infinitely  varied  expressiveness  and  power  of 
our  modern  music. 

If  it  is  important  that  the  minister  should  understand 
the  development  of  Christian  doctrine  from  the  apostolic 
age  until  the  present ;  if  it  is  wise  that  he  should  be  able 
to  give  the  leading  epochs  in  the  history  of  Christ's 
kingdom  on  earth,  and  have  a  more  or  less  intimate 
knowledge  of  the  life-work  of  the  great  leaders  of  the 
Church  universal,  it  seems  to  me  that  he  ought  also  to 
seek  to  have  a  comprehensive  view  of  the  development 
of  the  music  which  forms  so  striking  and  important  a 
part  of  every  public  service. 

Why  should  not  Palestrina  be  as  interesting  a  charac- 
ter as  Savonarola  ?  Why  should  not  Bach  warrant  study 
as  well  as  Melanchton  ?  Why  should  not  the  Genevan 
Psalter  interest  a  minister  as  much  as  Calvin's  Institutes  ? 
The  new  hymns  and  chorals  introduced  by  Luther  did 
more  in  spreading  the  Reformation  among  Germanic 
peoples  than  did  the  Augsburg  Confession :  why  should 
they  not  have  at  least  equal  attention,  particularly  as  they 
still  are  full  of  life  and  power,  while  the  Lutheran  symbol 
is  a  petrified  fossil  ? 

Indeed  it  will  be  impossible  for  him  to  have  any  intel- 
ligent basis  for  his  judgment  upon  church  music  without 
such  historical  knowledge.  If  he  knows  nothing  about 
the  contrapuntal  ingenuities  and  fantastic  polyphonies  of 
the  Middle  Ages,  how  can  the  name  of  Palestrina  mean 
anything  to  him,  and  how  can  the  reforming  influence  of 
the  Renaissance  upon  church  life  be  fully  comprehended 
without  this  knowledge  ?  If  he  knows  nothing  about  the 
choral  in  its  relation  to  the  German  Reformation,  knows 
nothing  of  its  influence  upon  German  life  and  character 
through  the  centuries  that  have  since  passed,  how  can  he 


64  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

appreciate  its  solemn  dignity  and  power,  or  how  can  he 
understand  its  hold  upon  the  German  people  ?  In  no 
other  way  can  he  hope  to  explain  its  adaptation  to  their 
religious  life  and  character,  or  comprehend  why,  though 
so  powerful  among  them,  it  should  not  have  equal  power 
or  adaptation  among  the  American  people  who  have  had 
a  different  history  and  have  developed  a  nervous  system 
of  an  entirely  different  type. 

If  the  minister  has  not  followed  the  development  of 
the  American  hymn  tune  from  William  Billings  down  to 
the  present  time,  if  he  does  not  know  the  extraordinary 
influence  of  Lowell  Mason  upon  American  church  music, 
or  the  progress  of  the  English  hymn  tune  from  Tallis 
down  to  Dykes,  how  can  he  judge  as  to  their  relative 
claims  upon  American  churches? 

Surely  he  ought  to  have  acquired  some  knowledge  of 
the  evolution  of  the  American  Gospel  song  from  the 
rude  choruses  that  were  sung  by  the  early  settlers  in  the 
log  schoolhouses  and  churches,  and  so  led  to  appreciate 
that  it  is  the  outgrowth  of  American  religious  conditions 
and  a  very  part  of  the  web  and  woof  of  American  church 
life.  How  else  can  he  judge  of  its  real  practical  value 
and  its  appropriate  place  in  our  more  sophisticated  church 
activities,  when  the  special  pleader  for  Anglican  church 
music  vehemently  attacks  this  characteristically  Ameri- 
can form  of  church  music  ? 

As  the  careful  study  of  the  history  of  Christian  apolo- 
getics, in  which  he  notes  the  swinging  of  the  pendulum 
of  thought  from  severely  orthodox  doctrines  to  liberal 
rationalism,  only  in  due  time  to  swing  back  again,  gives 
the  Christian  minister  serenity  and  repose  of  mind  in  the 
face  of  radical  higher  critics  and  other  rationalizing 
teachers  in  and  out  of  the  Church,  so  an  intimate  knowl- 


WHY  A  MINISTEK  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     65 

edge  of  the  history  of  church  music  beyond  the  Atlantic 
and  in  our  own  country  will  give  a  poise  of  mind  that 
cannot  be  disturbed  by  doctrinaires  or  by  travellers 
abroad  who  have  had  a  novel  experience  and  who  think 
they  are  bringing  back  a  new  musical  gospel. 

While  the  artistic  temperament  has  not  been  given  to 
all  men  in  like  degree,  yet  it  is  possible  to  develop  ca- 
pacity for  the  appreciation  of  things  beautiful.  The  re- 
ligious and  moral  are  the  chief  categories  that  engage  the 
mind  of  the  minister,  but  he  cannot  properly  emphasize 
and  impress  them  upon  his  hearers  unless  he  have  also  an 
interest  in  and  sympathy  for  that  which  is  artistic  and 
beautiful.  While  the  categories  of  the  true,  the  good, 
the  right  and  the  absolute  are  distinct  from  that  of  the 
beautiful,  it  is  nevertheless  closely  associated  with  them 
and  greatly  assists  in  their  development. 

There  is  nothing  so  stimulating  to  the  imagination  as 
is  music.  The  vague  physical  sensations  it  produces 
bring  waking  dreams  to  those  who  are  naturally  imagi- 
native and  in  their  minds  are  translated  into  pictorial  forms. 
Who  can  hear  the  Fifth  Symphony  of  Beethoven  with  its 
motif  of  Death  knocking  at  the  door  without  being  deeply 
impressed,  and  stimulated  to  an  intense  degree  ?  Now 
with  one  instrument,  now  with  another,  the  hand  of 
Death  is  heard  knocking,  knocking,  persistently  knock- 
ing. The  phrase  is  mysterious,  haunting,  ever  recurring, 
sometimes  sweet  and  plaintive,  sometimes  with  the  roar 
of  the  ocean  sounding  through  its  measures,  sometimes 
crashing  and  pounding  with  brass  and  cymbal  as  though 
siege  guns  were  being  trained  upon  the  heart.  As  the 
music  proceeds,  this  Dead  March  of  the  race  brings  pic- 
tures of  the  earth's  generations  as  they  are  born,  only  too 
soon  to  pass  away  under  the  hand  of  the  great  destroyer. 


66  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

The  lonely  death  in  the  wilderness,  the  quiet  cot  sur- 
rounded by  weeping  loved  ones,  the  gory  pomp  of  battle 
where  thousands  perish, — how  the  pictures  crowd  upon 
the  imagination  !  Then  the  adagio  sings  out  the  psalm 
of  life,  tender  and  sweet,  and  often  plaintive,  and  then 
rises  into  the  very  climax  of  power  and  impressiveness  as 
life  at  last  celebrates  its  complete  victory  over  human 
mortality. 

Surely  under  a  spell  such  as  this  there  must  come  to 
the  dullest  brain  new  possibilities  of  thought,  fresh  con- 
ceptions of  more  beautiful  things  than  he  had  ever  be- 
fore dreamed,  while  wider  horizons  break  in  upon  him. 
If  any  preacher  has  reason  to  fear  that  his  public  efforts 
are  dry,  uninteresting,  and  without  genuine  appeal  to  the 
minds  and  hearts  of  men,  let  him  quicken  his  imagina- 
tion by  reading  great  poetry  and  hearing  good  music, 
and  the  wilderness  of  his  mind  will  blossom  as  the  rose. 

Closely  allied  to  the  stimulating  effect  of  music  upon 
the  imagination  is  its  appeal  to  the  emotional  nature. 
It  may  be  made  an  opportunity  for  emotional  training 
and  development  such  as  can  be  secured  in  possibly  no 
other  way.  While  the  emotional  minister  has  to  contend 
with  shallow  fluctuations  of  mood,  or,  what  is  worse, 
conscious  stimulation  or  even  simulation  of  emotion  he 
wishes  to  feel,  his  unemotional,  matter-of-fact  brother, 
who  lacks  these  weaknesses  and  temptations,  lacks  also 
his  power  over  men, — for  only  a  small  proportion  among 
men  think,  while  all  feel. 

The  naturally  phlegmatic  minister  ought  to  develop 
his  latent  powers  of  emotion  and  he  will  find  music  a 
great  help  in  the  effort.  To  hear  martial  music  with  its 
irresistible  tramp,  tramp,  tramp,  demanding  action  and 
progress  is  to  develop  courage  and  aggressiveness.     To 


WHY  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     67 

listen  sympathetically  to  the  stately  funeral  march  will  lift 
personal  grief  and  sense  of  loss  to  a  more  dignified  and 
nobler  plane  of  feeling.  The  tender  ballad,  the  touching 
song,  will  call  forth  his  sense  of  pathos  and  render  him 
more  susceptible  to  the  sorrows  of  his  people.  The  im- 
pression made  by  some  great  anthem  of  praise,  rising 
grandly  above  the  commonplace  of  life's  mechanical 
routine,  must  render  him  more  capable  of  approaching 
his  Maker  with  proper  solemnity  and  dignity  of  feeling 
and  speech.  So  throughout  the  whole  gamut  of  human 
susceptibility,  music  by  laying  the  physical  basis  of  feel- 
ing inspires  feeling.  This  feeling  awakes  the  latent  re- 
sourcefulness of  matter  and  manner  and  fits  the  man  for 
the  general  apprehension  and  vital  consideration  of  the 
great  subjects  with  which  it  is  his  mission  to  impress  the 
hearts  and  lives  of  his  hearers. 

While  the  whole  world  is  open  to  the  preacher  from 
which  to  secure  illustrative  materials,  there  is  no  realm  of 
human  thought  more  likely  to  be  appreciated  and  under- 
stood and  yet  so  fresh  and  little  used  as  that  of  music. 
Our  public  schools  are  singing  schools  and  our  little  folks 
are  learning  their  do,  re,  mi,  with  their  alphabet.  In 
every  house  is  the  tinkle  of  the  mandolin,  the  strumming 
of  the  guitar,  the  swelling  notes  of  the  reed  organ,  or  the 
almost  orchestral  variety  of  the  piano.  Many  who  are 
not  studying  music  at  all  are  unconsciously  absorbing  its 
leading  facts  from  their  musical  environments.  The 
preacher,  therefore,  will  find  his  audience  peculiarly 
responsive  to  metaphors,  similes,  and  even  more  exten- 
sive illustrations  drawn  from  this  field.  Where  there  is 
no  previous  knowledge,  there  is  at  least  interest,  and  the 
fact  of  musical  history,  the  musical  anecdote,  the  descrip- 
tion  of  some  great  composition,  the  allusion  to  some 


68  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

famous  song,  will  catch  the  lagging  attention.  Nay, 
more  :  these  musical  memories  are  closely  associated  with 
the  sources  of  feeling.  If  the  string  of  sympathetic 
memory  is  set  to  vibrating,  it  is  more  than  likely  that  the 
other  strings  of  human  feeling  will  vibrate  in  harmony 
with  it,  and  so  prepare  the  hearer  for  the  impression  the 
preacher  desires  to  make. 

A  more  or  less  thorough  knowledge  of  music  will  give 
a  minister  greater  command  over  his  congregation. 
Musical  people  will  be  attracted  by  the  community  of  in- 
terest and  taste.  Those  who  are  intimately  identified 
with  the  music  of  the  church  will  have  a  sense  of 
comradeship  otherwise  not  likely  to  exist.  This  inti- 
macy will  make  possible  many  plans  that  otherwise  could 
not  be  considered.  If  he  is  wise  and  tactful,  he  can  win 
their  loyal  cooperation  for  many  plans  outside  of  the 
church  music. 

It  will  give  him  a  hold  upon  his  young  people  and 
secure  their  loyal  support,  for  young  people  are  usually 
the  most  enthusiastic  devotees  of  music.  It  will  give  him 
larger  opportunities  for  leadership  and  an  additional  basis 
for  authority.  It  will  put  him  in  touch  with  every  form 
of  the  church  activity  and  give  excuse  for  a  controlling 
influence  that  might  otherwise  have  been  resented.  It 
makes  him  master  of  the  whole  situation. 

But  if  there  were  no  other  reason  for  the  minister's 
interest  in  music,  its  large  place  in  the  public  service 
would  be  all-sufficient.  From  one-fifth  to  one-half  of 
every  service  over  which  the  minister  has  authority  is 
taken  up  with  music.  In  the  public  service  there  are  the 
preludes,  offertories,  and  postludes  by  the  organist,  the 
anthems,  responses,  and  solos  by  the  choir,  and  the  con- 
gregational singing.     The  responsiveness  of  his  hearers 


I 


WHY  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     69 

to  his  message  will  greatly  depend  upon  the  preliminary 
music,  the  final  impression  upon  the  closing  musical 
exercises.  Would  any  competent  manager  of  an  equally 
important  enterprise  leave  such  controlling  influences  at 
the  mercy  of  chance  or  of  the  ignorance  or  the  perversity 
of  assistants  ? 

How  much  the  prayer  service  is  depressed  by  incom- 
petent leadership  in  song,  or  inadequate  musical  provi- 
sion, I  hardly  need  to  emphasize.  Dull,  uninspiring 
music  in  the  Young  People's  Society  is  sure  to  wreck  its 
meetings.  Bright,  lively  songs  in  the  Sunday-school 
assure  large  attendance,  and  spirit  and  enthusiasm  in  all 
its  work.  In  an  evangelistic  meeting  the  best  workers 
now  recognize  the  singing  to  be  more  than  half  the 
battle. 

Now  whether  this  varied  music  in  all  these  services 
shall  be  effective  and  helpful  in  realizing  the  results  he 
desires  of  any  meeting,  or  whether  it  shall  be  absolutely 
in  antagonism  to  his  purpose,  leading  him  to  miss  the  op- 
portunities the  meeting  affords,  depends  upon  the  min- 
ister's skill  in  controlling  and  shaping  the  musical  service. 
Nothing  can  be  more  pitiable  than  the  ignorant  helpless- 
ness of  a  minister  who  depends  upon  the  more  or  less  in- 
efficient musical  resources  of  his  congregation.  He  has 
no  control  over  it ;  he  has  no  means  of  directing  its  in- 
fluence or  shaping  its  methods.  His  musical  subordinates 
may  have  absolutely  and  diametrically  antagonistic  ideas 
of  what  the  church  service  should  be  ;  but  he  is  helpless. 
He  may  wish  to  produce  distinctly  religious  results  :  the 
most  competent  musical  help  often  ignores  religious  re- 
sults and  seeks  only  those  that  are  artistic. 

The  outcome  is  a  kingdom  divided  against  itself,  a 
service  with  two  distinct  and  often  antagonistic  ideals 


70  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

and  purposes.  He  may  realize  the  difficulty,  but  in  his 
ignorance  he  is  unable  to  change  the  situation  or  over- 
come the  hindrances  that  handicap  his  work.  He  may 
have  some  tender  message  for  his  people,  while  the 
musicians  back  of  him  sing  jubilant  strains  of  martial 
music  and  the  organist's  voluntaries  are  brilliant  with 
technical  skill  utterly  out  of  harmony  with  his  purpose 
in  the  meeting.  He  may  wish  to  inspire  the  church  to 
aggressive  action  and  to  make  the  service  a  very  trumpet 
of  awakening,  while  the  choir  sings  an  anthem  of  tender- 
ness, and  his  organist  discourses  sweet  music  that  serves 
to  quiet  and  depress  the  nerves  of  his  people.  Knowing 
nothing  about  music  he  has  no  influence  with  his  musical 
assistants,  while  they,  knowing  nothing  of  his  ideas  for 
the  service,  are  at  odds  with  him  and  his  plans  at  every 
turn. 

On  the  other  hand,  if  the  minister  is  a  musician,  his 
musical  helpers  feel  that  he  can  speak  upon  the  subject 
with  authority ;  he  can  understand  their  difficulties,  can 
appreciate  their  work  when  it  is  well  done,  and  by  a 
kindly  word  and  appreciative  look  can  develop  their 
loyalty  to  him  personally.  He  is  able  to  prepare  their 
minds,  by  quiet  suggestions  and  earnest  advice,  for  the 
larger  conception  of  the  musical  part  of  the  service.  In 
a  very  short  time  he  can  make  them  his  faithful  coadju- 
tors, studying  how  to  realize  effects  he  desires  to  secure, 
advising  him  as  to  the  compositions  at  their  command, 
and  often  suggesting  not  only  musical  means  by  which 
the  service  can  be  enriched  and  made  more  effective,  but 
also  methods  that  can  be  employed  in  his  part  of  the 
service  that  might  not  otherwise  have  occurred  to  him. 

Having  at  his  command,  therefore,  no  longer  simply 
his  sermon  and  the  Scripture  readings,  but  calling  to  his 


WHY  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  STUDY  MUSIC     71 

aid  the  use  of  hymns  and  tunes  with  their  varied  and  im- 
pressive rendering,  the  use  of  solos  and  duets  and  con- 
certed numbers,  the  use  of  the  choir  with  its  chorus  of 
intelligent  and  well-trained  voices,  his  work  will  gain  a 
richness  and  a  variety  and  a  unity  and  an  impressiveness 
that  the  unmusical  pastor  never  can  hope  to  secure. 


V 

WHAT  A  MINISTER  SHOULD  KNOW  ABOUT  MUSIC 

THERE  is  no  reason  why  an  intellectual,  alert- 
minded  minister  should  not  find  the  rudiments 
of  musical  notation  with  their  varied  signs  and 
symbols  as  interesting  as  those  of  algebra  or  geometry. 
These  signs  and  symbols  are  not  mere  puzzles,  arbitrary 
constructions  of  misapplied  ingenuity,  but  clear  expres- 
sions of  definite  facts  and  their  relations. 

Even  the  little  attention  to  botany  a  busy  pastor  can 
afford  to  give,  transforms  the  whole  plant  world  from  a 
miscellaneous  collection  of  vegetables  that  are  palatable, 
and  weeds  that  are  noxious,  into  a  realm  of  magical 
beauty,  of  infinitely  varied  manifestations  of  divine  wis- 
dom and  purpose. 

In  like  manner  the  study  of  music  opens  out  a  new 
mental  dimension  full  of  new  insights  and  experiences. 
As  he  appropriates  the  rudiments  of  the  art  of  Bach  and 
Beethoven,  their  genius  grows  greater  in  his  estimation 
and  not  less,  for  he  learns  to  appreciate  the  meagre  ma- 
terials from  which  such  ravishing  or  impressive  strains 
are  constructed.  What  was  before  pleasing  but  rather 
meaningless  sound  becomes  intelligible,  and  proves  the 
vehicle  of  expression  for  thoughts  and  feelings  that  words 
are  too  clumsy  and  crass  to  properly  convey. 

Once  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  the  musical  arcana, 
the  history  of  its  development  will  be  of  intense  interest, 

72 


WHAT  A  MINISTEE  SHOULD  KNOW         73 

as  he  studies  the  lives  and  works  of  the  epoch-making 
composers  who  have  struck  out  new  paths  and  risen  to 
higher  and  wider  conceptions  of  the  expressiveness  of 
music.  The  study  and  analysis  of  the  world's  greatest 
compositions  both  in  score  and  in  performance  must  dis- 
cipline the  mind  and  refine  the  susceptibilities.  Here  is 
pure  culture  that  will  react  upon  the  whole  thinking  and 
feeling  man  and  change  the  very  grain  of  his  nature. 

A  knowledge  of  the  rudiments  of  music  can  be  ac- 
quired by  any  man  of  average  intelligence  in  the  course 
of  a  month  by  an  hour's  study  each  day.  A  G  Clef 
sign   (g)   or   an  F  Clef  sign  (g|)   is   no  more  a   mere 

hieroglyphic  without  meaning,  but  a  recognition  of  the 
fundamental  difference  between  human  voices.  A  sharp 
(j+)  is  no  longer  confused  with  a  flat  (1?),  but  both  be- 
come keys  to  the  different  tonalities  of  the  scale.  He 
can  tell  what  is  the  error  in  the  singing  of  a  tune  when 
the  rhythm  is  disturbed,  asking  that  a  half  note  be  given 
its  full  time  instead  of  being  sung  as  a  quarter,  or  calling 
attention  to  the  dotted  quarter  and  the  subsequent  eighth 
which  are  not  given  their  relative  values.  He  will  know 
something  of  the  beating  of  time  when  occasion  arises  for 
his  personally  emphasizing  the  time  of  a  piece  that  is  be- 
ing sung  and  will  not  saw  the  air  in  a  blundering,  pur- 
poseless way  that  makes  him  ridiculous  to  the  musical 
people  in  his  congregation. 

The  minister  ought,  furthermore,  to  have  a  working 
theory  of  the  methods  by  which  music  can  be  used. 
What  plans  and  schemes  can  be  used  to  make  his  con- 
gregational singing  full  and  impressive  will  call  not  only 
for  a  study  of  those  used  elsewhere,  but  of  their  adaptation 
to  his  congregation.     He  ought  to  have  a  clear  idea  of 


74  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

the  value  and  place  and  limitations  of  the  Gospel  song. 
The  use  of  responses  by  the  choir,  or  even  by  the  con- 
gregation, ought  to  have  careful  consideration,  and  the 
limits  of  their  practicability  among  his  particular  people 
ought  to  be  settled.  Just  how  and  to  what  extent  an- 
thems will  enrich  his  public  service  should  be  canvassed 
and  a  definite  practical  conclusion  sought.  How  to  se- 
cure the  value  of  solo  work  in  his  particular  congregation, 
and  what  its  character  shall  be,  will  cause  him  no  little 
anxious  thought.  Whether  the  use  of  cantatas  or  even 
oratorios  in  enriching  the  spiritual  as  well  as  the  mental 
and  artistic  life  of  his  community  will  be  practical,  calls 
for  a  careful  canvass  of  the  situation.  It  may  be  even  an 
open  question  whether  he  has  not  a  duty  to  perform  to 
the  musical  culture  of  his  community  by  the  suggestion 
and  fostering  of  concerts  and  recitals. 

Not  only  the  methods,  but  the  means,  will  need  his  un- 
ceasing attention.  With  the  great  variety  of  hymn  tunes 
with  which  our  hymnals  are  flooded,  likely  to  distract  his 
artistic  and  practical  judgment,  he  will  need  to  give  them 
careful  study  and  reach  a  working  basis  which  will 
enable  him  to  use  only  the  best  in  an  intelligent  way. 
An  occasional  hour  spent  with  the  church  organist  play- 
ing over  the  tunes  in  the  hymnal  will  be  time  well  spent. 
A  reasonable  attention  to  the  new  hymnals  of  every  kind 
and  size  issued  for  church  service,  for  devotional  meet- 
ings and  Sunday-school  use  must  be  given.  The  new 
Gospel  songs  that  rise  into  popular  use,  some  temporarily, 
others  permanently,  should  be  promptly  noted  for  early 
introduction.  The  vocal  solo  suitable  for  church  use  that 
is  heard  in  some  other  service  may  be  added  to  his  mental 
repertoire  for  suggestion  to  his  own  singers.  This  is 
even   more   true   of  the  anthem  music  which  in  many 


WHAT  A  MINISTEE  SHOULD  KNOW         75 

churches  forms  so  important  and  valuable  a  part  of  the 
service.  Still  more  important  is  his  practical  knowledge 
of  the  contents  of  the  various  hymnals  and  song-books 
in  use  among  his  people  and  of  the  anthem  books  and 
octavos  already  in  the  possession  of  his  choir.  Just  as 
the  preacher  cultivates  the  homiletical  habit  until  it  grows 
so  automatic  that  it  seems  an  instinct,  gathering  ideas  and 
illustrations  from  every  source,  so  he  should  cultivate  the 
habit  of  mental  alertness  for  musical  materials  for  the  rest 
of  his  service. 

The  same  open  hospitality  of  mind  should  be  developed 
in  the  recognition  of  musical  talent  among  his  people. 
The  budding  young  woman  whose  voice  is  strengthening 
and  enlarging  its  scope  into  a  valuable  soprano,  or  into 
an  even  more  valuable  alto,  or  the  young  man  whose 
changing  voice  is  settling  into  a  musical  tenor  or  bass, 
should  nowhere  find  such  quick  recognition  as  from  the 
sympathetic  pastor  eager  to  build  up  his  musical  forces. 
The  child  struggling  with  the  violin,  flute,  or  cornet,  or 
any  other  musical  instrument,  may  be  a  severe  discipline 
to  the  patience  just  now,  but  the  wise  pastor  gives  en- 
couragement to  it  as  a  coming  member  of  the  occasional 
or  permanent  church  orchestra.  Whatever  the  musical 
talent,  the  proper  place  and  opportunity  will  in  due  time 
arrive  for  its  development  and  use. 

The  thoughtful  pastor,  with  his  plans  and  methods 
sought  and  canvassed,  his  musical  materials  gathered  and 
studied,  the  varied  talents  of  his  people  appreciated  and 
marshalled,  is  ready  to  do  efficient  work,  for  these  are  his 
resources,  these  are  the  musical  tools  with  which  he 
works.  Can  he  expect  to  be  recognized  as  a  skillful  and 
accomplished  workman  if  he  does  not  understand  their 
use  ?     Altogether  the  musical  side  of  his  calling  will  be 


76  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

found  worthy  the  keenest  interest  and  most  earnest  study 
of  the  ablest  and  most  intellectual  minister. 

As  has  been  suggested  in  my  preliminary  remarks  the 
minister's  study  of  music  ought  to  be  preeminently 
practical.  While  the  impulse  to  consider  it  from  an 
artistic  standpoint  will  be  spontaneous  and  strong,  as  a 
minister  charged  with  the  responsibility  of  comforting 
and  inspiring  the  souls  in  his  congregation  and  of  help- 
ing them  in  their  devotions,  it  is  music  as  an  applied  art 
that  should  appeal  to  him  most  effectively,  for  it  is  help- 
fulness, not  abstract  ideals,  that  is  the  final  criterion  of 
success.  Hymns,  and  the  tunes  that  give  them  the 
needed  wings,  are  means  to  definite  ends  and  are  to  be 
judged  and  valued  in  so  far  as  they  realize  these  desired 
ends.  The  more  clearly  these  ends  are  formulated,  the 
more  easily  can  the  means  be  judged.  Forgetting  the 
purpose  in  view  leads  to  abstract  and  impracticable  ideals 
and  standards  which,  however  admirable  and  attractive  in 
themselves,  culminate  in  an  utter  subversion  of  the  ends 
that  after  all  are  so  much  more  important. 

But  I  hear  some  of  you  cry  with  a  gasp,  "  Who  is  suf- 
ficient unto  these  things  ? "  Am  I  laying  burdens  of 
preparation  on  you  beyond  the  endurance  of  weak  flesh  ? 
What  man  has  done,  man  can  do.  There  are  scattered 
over  the  land,  here  and  there,  many  successful  pastors 
who  have  acquired  all  I  have  suggested  and  very  much 
more.  My  task  has  been  to  lead  you  up  to  "  Mount 
Nebo's  lonely  height,"  and  to  give  you  a  glimpse  of  the 
musical  Land  of  Promise  where  the  milk  and  honey  of 
successful  church  work  flow.  It  is  for  you  to  enter  in 
and  to  possess  it  all  if  you  will,  or  to  share  it  with  the 
Philistines  of  worldly  praise,  indifference  or  sloth,  who  will 
trouble  you  grievously,  even  as  theydid  the  Israelites  of  old. 


WHAT  A  MINISTEE  SHOULD  KNOW         77 

It  may  seem  to  many  that  such  a  program  of  musical 
education  as  has  been  outlined  above  is  practically  impos- 
sible. There  is  an  erroneous  impression  abroad  that  in 
order  to  understand  music  one  must  have  peculiar  gifts. 
Indeed  so  profound  is  this  impression  that  the  corollary 
has  been  drawn  that  any  one  who  understands  music 
must  be  a  peculiar  person  set  apart  from  his  kind. 
While  it  is  true  that  for  the  highest  executive  ability  in 
music,  and  still  more  for  creative  work,  peculiar  talents 
are  needed,  just  as  such  extraordinary  talents  are  needed 
for  writing  the  highest  type  of  poetry,  for  producing  the 
greatest  architectural  designs,  or  in  utilizing  the  strategic 
possibilities  of  an  army,  it  is  also  true  that  any  one  with 
ordinary  intelligence  can  learn  the  rudiments  of  music 
and  understand  at  least  the  mechanical  elements  of  the 
art. 

For  a  minister  to  ignore  the  subject  of  music  because 
he  has  no  talent  for  it,  is  as  foolish  as  it  would  be  for  him 
to  refuse  to  study  Greek  or  Hebrew,  or  even  the  use  of 
good  current  English,  because  he  has  no  talent  for  lan- 
guage such  as  had  Poe  or  Lanier  or  Stevenson,  those 
wizards  with  magical  power  over  the  English  language. 
He  might  as  well  refuse  to  write  because  he  could  not 
produce  such  calligraphic  examples  as  ornament  the 
studies  of  our  writing  teachers  in  business  colleges. 

It  may  be  true  in  some  cases,  where  the  capacity  for 
detecting  differences  in  pitch  is  wanting,  that  he  may  not 
be  able  to  learn  to  sing  by  note,  or  even  to  learn  a  tune 
by  rote ;  but  even  in  such  extreme  cases,  by  the  applica- 
tion of  mere  intelligence,  such  as  would  be  applied  to 
any  other  subject,  he  can  secure  all  needed  knowledge 
preparing  him  to  give  direction  and  oversight  to  the 
musical  work  of  his  church.     It  ought  to  be  made  a  mark 


78  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

of  inferiority,  a  thing  of  discredit  to  any  minister  who 
aspires  to  the  management  of  the  life  of  a  Christian 
church,  that  he  should  not  have  this  rudimental  knowl- 
edge of  notation  and  a  fairly  clear  idea  of  the  uses  and 
applications  of  music  in  his  work. 

I  do  not  demand  a  technical  education  in  a  difficult 
course,  requiring  long  continued  study  leading  to  expert 
knowledge  and  skill.  What  is  wanted  is  an  absorption 
of  musical  facts,  an  apprehension  of  musical  principles 
and  a  purposeful  study  of  the  applications  of  music  to 
church  work.  There  is  no  need  of  a  great  outlay  of  time 
and  effort,  but  there  are  required  the  open  mind  and  the 
observant  ear,  so  that  with  here  a  little,  and  there  a  little, 
the  minister  is  educating  himself  in  music  and  preparing 
himself  to  apply  it  practically.  If  his  education  as  a 
child  and  youth  has  been  what  it  ought  to  have  been, 
by  his  reading,  by  his  hearing  of  music,  by  his  amateurish 
and  halting  efforts  at  playing  or  singing,  but  above  all  by 
the  careful  observation  of  the  methods  and  plans  by 
which  the  results  may  be  achieved  that  one  can  expect 
from  music,  the  preparation  will  be  obtained  for  an  in- 
telligent oversight  of  the  music  of  the  church. 

That  this  can  be  done  is  proved  by  the  example  of 
Moody.  He  was  no  musician.  Whether  he  had  a  par- 
ticle of  the  artistic  temperament  I  greatly  doubt.  But 
he  knew  the  power  of  music  in  securing  immediate  prac- 
tical results,  and,  what  is  even  more  important,  he  knew 
what  sort  of  music  would  produce  the  results  he  wanted. 
He  was  one  of  the  best  judges  of  the  practical,  available 
value  of  a  new  Gospel  song  to  be  found  in  his  day  and 
generation,  for  his  practical  judgment  was  not  distracted 
by  artistic  considerations. 

They  tell  a  characteristic  story  of  him  at  Northfield 


WHAT  A  MINISTEE  SHOULD  KNOW         79 

that  ought  to  give  heart  to  the  minister  who  is  least  gifted 
in  music.  He  called  for  the  Long  Meter  Doxology  at 
one  of  their  school  meetings.  The  organist,  who  was 
something  of  a  wag,  played  Yankee  Doodle  in  a  very 
slow  and  sedate  way  instead.  Moody  broke  out  impul- 
sively, "  I  don't  know  why  it  is,  but  dear  Old  Hundredth 
grows  sweeter  every  time  I  hear  it ! "  The  assembly 
laughed  and  so  did  Moody  when  some  one  whispered 
the  facts  to  him.  If  a  man  so  musically  ignorant  as  that 
could  transform  the  religious  life  of  two  nations,  largely 
by  the  use  of  simple  Gospel  songs,  why  should  any  of  us 
despair  of  achieving  at  least  a  measure  of  success  ? 


VI 
A  STUDY  IN  CHURCH  HYMNALS 

MOST  ministers  know  their  Bible  in  a  vital,  con- 
crete way  all  too  little,  but  they  know  their 
church  hymnals  very  much  less.  They  run 
through  them  occasionally  to  find  a  set  of  hymns  that 
will  suit  their  sermons  and  so  pick  up  a  little  miscel- 
laneous knowledge,  but  a  careful,  organized  study  of  the 
hymnals  is  rare  among  them.  Yet  the  hymnal  and  its 
tunes  are  important  factors  in  every  public  service. 

The  faith  of  most  ministers  in  the  editors  of  their  par- 
ticular church  hymnal  is  greater  than  their  faith  in  the 
divine  inspiration  of  the  Bible.  If  a  certain  tune  is  given 
to  a  particular  hymn,  there  is  no  question  of  fitness 
raised, — it  is  in  the  hymnal  and  therefore  it  must  be  right. 
Yet  many  of  our  hymnals,  even  those  that  are  extremely 
pretentious,  are  compiled  by  amateurs,  who  have  little 
genuine  musical  training,  or  by  musicians  who  have 
training  of  a  high  order,  but  no  practical  experience  in 
the  varying  resources  of  different  congregations. 

A  hymnal  made  by  an  expert  hymnologist  and  an 
equally  expert  musician  is  not  necessarily  a  good  one  for 
actual  use.  In  both  cases,  expertness  depends  upon  a 
microscopic  study  of  details,  a  knowledge  of  obscure 
facts  and  considerations,  and  a  taste  that  is  nice  in  its 
discrimination.  This  leads  to  the  mental  microscopic 
habit,  an  emphasis  upon  details  out  of  all  proportion  to 
their  importance.     In  almost  every  line  of  human  ac- 

80 


A  STUDY  IN  CHURCH  HYMNALS  81 

tivity  the  expert  is  more  valuable  as  an  adviser  than  as 
a  manager.  The  best  hymnal, — that  is,  the  one  which 
serves  the  purpose  of  a  hymnal  best, — is  made  by  a  prac- 
tical man  who  knows  all  the  varied  needs  of  the  churches, 
assisted  by  hymnological  and  musical  experts.  Only  in 
this  way  can  the  proper  subordination  of  literary  and 
musical  art  to  the  religious  purpose  be  secured. 

For  the  hymnal  is  not  a  work  of  art — it  is  a  tool ! 
Whether  a  mechanical  tool  shall  be  made  of  highly  tem- 
pered steel  or  of  soft  malleable  iron  depends  upon  the 
use  to  which  it  is  to  be  put.  To  make  the  trowel  in  the 
hands  of  a  mason  like  a  Damascus  blade,  with  inlayings 
of  gold  and  silver,  is  no  more  absurd  than  to  make  a 
hymnal  adapted  to  the  resources  of  a  great  cathedral  with 
endowed  choirs  for  the  use  of  a  denomination  abounding 
in  weak  village  and  rural  congregations.  Yet  hymnal 
editors,  from  personal  or  denominational  pride,  are  con- 
stantly perpetrating  this  absurdity. 

In  their  honest  desire  to  make  the  best  possible 
hymnal  worthy  of  the  highest  culture  among  their 
people,  a  recent  hymnal  committee  appointed  as  its 
musical  editors  a  professor  of  Greek  and  the  head  of  a 
university  conservatory  of  music  who  was  a  member  of 
another  church  of  high  liturgical  character.  The  com- 
mittee itself  had  a  good  deal  of  practical  sense  and  the 
result  is  a  mixed  company  where  tunes  named  after  all 
the  saints  in  the  Romish  calendar  elbow  Gospel  songs  of 
varying  value.  Many  of  the  most  popular  hymns  are  set 
to  unfamiliar  English  tunes,  while  the  American  tunes  to 
which  they  are  almost  invariably  sung  are  placed  with- 
out the  words  at  the  bottom  of  the  same  or  opposite 
page.  Of  course,  that  is  up  to  date  ;  but  when  being 
"  up   to   date "  is  to  hamper  and  harass  the  Christian 


82  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

worker  in  and  out  of  the  pulpit  and  to  throw  a  wet 
blanket  over  the  whole  church  life,  one  is  led  to  wonder 
whether  such  progress  is  not  of  the  Crustacean  order. 

There  are  some  denominations  in  this  country  whose 
average  of  musical  culture  and  resources  is  so  great  that 
they  can  use  a  hymnal  of  high  literary  and  musical 
standard  quite  effectively.  In  such  cases  I  have  no 
criticism  to  make,  if  the  high  ideals  sought  to  be 
realized  be  actually  sincere  and  spontaneous,  and  not 
studied  or  born  of  pretentious  pride.  I  only  raise  the 
question  whether  a  church  that  insists  upon  exclusive 
devotion  to  narrowly  ecclesiastical  music  is  likely  to  make 
any  impression  upon  the  outside  world  or  is  prepared  to 
fulfill  the  Master's  Great  Commission.  But  that  churches 
that  are  popular  in  character,  and  that  are  responsible  for 
the  common  people  whom  God  must  love  because  He 
made  so  many  of  them,  to  paraphrase  Lincoln's  charac- 
teristic remark,  should  so  forget  their  mission  as  to  imitate 
these  abstract  and  ecclesiastically  conventional  standards, 
is  not  so  pardonable. 

Permit  me  to  join  the  large  number  of  those  who  plead 
for  smaller  collections  of  hymns  and  tunes  than  those  now 
in  vogue.  Half  a  century  ago  Prof.  B.  B.  Edwards  of 
Andover  made  the  same  plea  from  the  literary  stand- 
point :  "  Two  or  three  hundred  of  the  most  exquisite 
songs  of  Zion  .  .  .  would  include  all  of  the  psalms 
and  hymns  which  are  of  sterling  value  for  the  sanctuary." 
I  sympathize  with  that  plea  from  the  practical  side, — but 
who  shall  select  the  "  two  or  three  hundred "  ?  A 
hymnal  containing  over  eleven  hundred  hymns  was  sub- 
mitted to  fifteen  competent  clerical  critics  for  suggestions 
as  to  the  exclusion  of  unnecessary  hymns  :  less  than  one 
hundred  hymns  were  retained  by  unanimous  vote.     Ten 


A  STUDY  EN  CHUECH  HYMXALS  83 

American  clergymen  were  asked  to  indicate  what  six 
hundred  hymns  ought  to  be  dropped  out  of  a  collection 
of  nearly  thirteen  hundred ;  only  fifty-six  hymns  were 
unanimously  rejected.  Such  a  diversity  of  taste  is  due  to 
differences  of  personal,  mental  and  spiritual  history,  of 
culture,  of  character,  of  type  of  mind, — even  of  passing 
mood! 

We  have  reached  in  many  of  our  recent  hymnals  a 
very  practical  compromise  between  the  "  two  or  three 
hundred  "  of  Dr.  Edwards,  and  the  twelve  hundred  justi- 
fied by  Dr.  Austin  Phelps.  The  "  Carmina  Sanctorum  " 
and  the  new  Methodist  Hymnal  have  less  than  seven 
hundred  and  fifty,  and  "  The  Church  Hymnal "  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  less  than  seven  hundred. 
But  while  the  number  of  hymns  is  only  half  what  it  was, 
the  fashion  of  furnishing  alternative  tunes  for  every  hymn 
has  kept  our  hymn-books  quite  as  cumbersome  as  before. 
To  reproduce  a  single  hymn  three  or  four  times  in  order 
to  introduce  as  many  different  tunes  pads  our  hymn- 
books  monstrously.  Some  of  the  hymns  thus  honoured 
but  ill  deserve  such  high  distinction ;  others  are  appro- 
priate so  rarely  that  ithardly  seems  worth  while  to  burden 
the  worshipper  by  supplying  so  many  alternative  tunes. 
"  This  too  will  pass,"  and  we  shall  presently  have  hymnals 
containing  about  five  hundred  or  even  less  hymns  with 
only  additional  alternative  tunes  where  they  are  actually 
necessary.  But  as  long  as  we  have  church  leaders  who 
still  judge  the  dignity  of  a  book  by  its  size  and  base  their 
denominational  pride  on  the  avoirdupois  weight  of  their 
church  hymnals,  the  purse  of  the  American  churchgoer 
and  his  manual  comfort  will  be  uselessly  imposed  upon. 

The  hymnal  is  not  merely  a  sacred  anthology,  the  only 
test  of  appearance  in  which  is  intrinsic  value.     Dr.  Austin 


84  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

Phelps  brings  out  the  architectonic  element  in  hymnal 
building  so  clearly  that  I  quote  his  statement :  "  A  good 
compilation  of  hymns  is  something  more  than  a  con- 
glomeration of  good  hymns.  It  is  a  structure.  The 
idea  of  proportion  is  omnipresent  and  the  demands  of 
proportion  are  often  as  decisive  in  its  framework  as  in 
architecture.  That  is  not  a  constructive  criticism  of  such 
a  manual,  which  would  judge  of  the  exclusion  or  the  ad- 
mission of  a  hymn  by  its  intrinsic  merits  alone.  Its 
relation  to  the  structure  as  a  whole  should  often  be  more 
conclusive  than  its  absolute  excellence  or  demerit. 
Church  song  as  an  expression  of  religious  life  requires 
that  a  hymn-book  be  vital  with  the  life  of  the  church 
collectively.  It  must  possess  not  only  breadth  of  range 
in  respect  of  the  old  and  the  new,  but  symmetry  in 
respect  of  diversities  of  taste  and  culture." 

This  phrase  "  diversities  of  taste  and  culture  "  brings 
up  for  consideration  the  question,  Shall  our  church 
hymnals  contain  Gospel  songs  ?  That  depends  not  only 
on  the  average  culture  of  the  denomination  for  whose  use 
a  given  hymnal  is  made,  but  also  on  the  character  of  the 
work  it  is  trying  to  do.  It  also  depends  on  the  size  of 
the  denomination  :  if  it  is  large  and  somewhat  hetero- 
geneous in  its  educational,  social  and  conventional  lines 
of  cleavage,  it  may  be  wise  to  have  a  larger  hymnal 
without  the  Gospel  songs  for  the  more  dignified  and 
sedate  congregations  in  the  cities,  and  a  smaller  one  con- 
taining a  wise  selection  of  them  for  the  less  conventional 
suburban,  village  and  rural  congregations.  Where  a 
hymnal  is  to  supply  the  needs  of  all  the  church  activities, 
it  seems  to  me  a  selection  of  the  best  Gospel  songs  will 
be  indispensable  for  devotional  meetings  and  evangelistic 
services.     Even  the  aggressive  larger  churches,  whose 


A  STUDY  IN  CHUKCH  HYMNALS  85 

Sunday  morning  worship  finds  a  place  only  for  the 
statelier  standard  hymns,  will  need  them  for  the  popular 
evening  service.  After  all,  it  is  not  a  question  of  prin- 
ciple, but  one  of  sheer  expediency  to  be  setAed  by  each 
denomination  or  congregation  for  itself,  not  on  the  basis 
of  pride  and  dignity  and  artistic  taste,  but  on  that  of  the 
largest  possible  efficiency. 


VII 

AMERICAN  HYMN  TUNES 

FROM  this  consideration  of  the  hymnal  as  a  whole 
let  us  turn  to  the  study  of  the  individual  tunes, 
their  history  and  practical  value.  There  can  be 
no  question  as  to  the  importance  of  this  familiarity  to  any 
minister.  He  should  know  the  melodies  and  the  names 
of  these  tunes  and  be  able  to  refer  to  them  accurately  and 
with  proper  discrimination.  Does  he  wish  to  sing  Per- 
ronet's  classic,  "  All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus'  name,"  he 
ought  to  know  whether  he  wants  it  sung  to  "  Corona- 
tion," "  Miles  Lane,"  or  the  more  recently  introduced 
"  Welsh  Coronation."  The  names,  Duke  Street,  Old 
Hundredth,  Bethany,  Webb,  Olmutz,  Harwell,  Uxbridge, 
Vox  Delicti,  Nicaea,  Laudes  Domini,  should  instantly  set 
the  corresponding  tunes  singing  in  his  mind. 

While  hymns  and  tunes  whose  marriage  has  been  sol- 
emnized in  the  church's  consciousness  by  generations  of 
associated  use  should  be  divorced  only  for  the  most  per- 
emptory reasons,  there  are  many  hymns  which  it  may  be 
wise  to  sing  to  one  tune  at  one  time  and  to  a  different 
tune  at  another.  A  clear  realization  of  the  associations 
clustering  about  each  tune,  of  the  practical  characteristics 
it  presents  in  actual  use,  is  therefore  absolutely  essential. 
It  is  but  natural  and  right  that  one  should  first  turn  to 
the  hymn  tunes  written  in  America.  This  is  all  the 
more  proper  because  in  no  other  field  of  church  activity 
has   America  done  so   much  for  religious  life  abroad  or 

86 


AMEKICAN  HYMN  TUNES  87 

wielded  so  wide  an  influence.  These  tunes,  moreover, 
are  the  work  of  our  own  people  and,  what  is  more  im- 
portant, are  adapted  to  our  use,  because  they  are  the 
product  of  our  peculiar  conditions  and  of  our  American 
individuality  of  thought  and  spirit.  In  other  words,  they 
are  an  expression  of  the  peculiar  nervous  conditions 
which  stamp  all  our  social,  mental  and  religious  life  as 
distinctively  American. 

This  is  not  a  historical  work,  and  I  do  not  propose  to 
give  the  detailed  historical  facts  of  the  development  of 
American  church  music,  as  they  are  easily  accessible. 
The  barest  outline  will  suffice  for  my  purpose.  Un- 
doubtedly, the  earliest  tunes  used  in  American  churches 
were  brought  over  by  the  colonists  from  time  to  time. 
How  soon  the  impulse  was  felt  to  make  tunes  of  their 
own  is  not  clear,  but  there  is  reason  to  believe  that 
"  Mear,"  first  published  in  America  in  the  year  1726, 
was  the  first  tune  composed  and  printed  in  America. 
There  probably  were  many  others  that  never  reached  the 
dignity  of  print,  but  were  transmitted  orally.  William 
Billings,  whose  "  Easter  Anthem  "  is  still  sung  occasion- 
ally, made  the  first  notable  effort  to  furnish  American 
hymn  tunes.  They  were  very  crude  and  imperfect  and 
were  fugal  in  character.  Oliver  Holden  and  Daniel  Read 
soon  issued  their  collections,  also  in  the  fugal  style,  of 
which  only  simplified  forms  of  "  Coronation  "  and  "  Lis- 
bon "  yet  survive.  From  the  fugal  era  thus  set  in  motion 
"  Northfield "  still  survives  in  its  original  form,  and 
"  Lenox "  and  "  Windham  "  in  an  arranged  form  that 
eliminates  the  fugue. 

When  the  fugal  tune,  like  the  polyphonic  music  of  the 
later  Middle  Ages,  lost  itself  in  intricate  absurdities, 
there  was  a  strong  reaction.     An  earnest  reform  move- 


88  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

ment  to  bring  back  the  original  simplicity  was  instituted. 
While  Lowell  Mason  was  a  product  of  the  movement 
rather  than  its  originator,  his  personal  character,  his 
thorough  musical  education,  his  power  as  a  teacher,  his 
fine  discrimination  in  the  selection  and  adaptation  of  secu- 
lar music  to  religious  uses,  and  his  own  fertility  in  writ- 
ing attractive,  practical,  and  appropriate  psalm  and  hymn 
tunes,  fully  entitle  him  to  recognition  as  the  premier 
among  the  leaders  in  the  effort.  His  influence  in  Eng- 
land was  quite  as  great  as  in  America,  for  there  the  same 
hydra-headed  fugal  dragon  was  to  be  slain. 

Such  a  transformation  could  not  be  wrought  without 
calling  out  bitter  antagonism.  The  new  music  was  ex- 
tremely popular  and  the  books  of  Lowell  Mason  and 
those  of  his  contemporaries,  Webb,  Emerson,  Bradbury, 
Woodbury,  and  others  sold  by  the  hundred  thousand. 
Human  nature  being  then  what  it  is  now,  there  was  no 
lack  of  imputations  of  interested  motives.  One  writer 
sneers  at  the  "  whining  singsong  tunes,  Hebron,  Balerma, 
Ward,  etc.,"  and  calls  these  authors  "  a  set  of  speculators 
who  trade  in  the  songs  of  Zion.  The  public  ought  to  be 
cautioned  against  such  pickpockets."  Compare  this 
specimen  of  Christian  charity  with  the  remark  of  a 
recent  writer  on  the  popularity  of  Sunday-school  and 
Gospel  songs,  "  Certain  irresponsible  publishing  houses 
thrive  upon  it  and  succeed  all  too  well  in  imposing  a  lot 
of  periodical  trash  upon  credulous  congregations." 

Mason's  popular  tune,  "  Bethany,"  closely  approaches 
the  style  of  the  more  dignified  Gospel  songs.  It  used  to 
be  held  up  to  scorn  as  a  plagiarism  based  on  "  Oft  in  the 
Stilly  Night,"  but  the  slight  resemblance  strikes  me  as 
one  of  those  coincidences  of  which  musical  literature  is 
so   full.     It    is   a   most   valuable   and   expressive   tune, 


AMERICAN  HYMN  TUNES  89 

whether  used  by  a  small  or  by  a  large  audience.  In 
America,  at  least,  it  should  never  be  divorced  from 
"  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee." 

His  "  Uxbridge  "  has  the  dignity  and  strength  of  the 
old  Reformation  psalm  tunes  like  "  Old  Hundredth." 
While  there  is  little  harmonic  variety  in  "  Laban,"  the 
melody  is  so  virile  in  its  simplicity  that  it  is  most  ad- 
mirably adapted  to  hymns  of  aggressiveness.  But  space 
fails  me  to  fitly  characterize  "  Hebron,"  and  "  Mission- 
ary Hymn,"  and  "  Olivet,"  and  "  Rockingham,"  and 
"  Migdol,"  and  "  Harwell,"  and  the  twoscore  other  noble 
tunes  bearing  his  name  as  composer  or  arranger  that  are 
found  in  our  present  hymnals.  Has  not  their  sound  gone 
out  to  the  ends  of  the  earth  ? 

Perhaps  Lowell  Mason  did  almost  as  much  for  our 
American  church  music  by  his  remarkable  gift  of  selec- 
tion and  adaptation  as  by  his  original  work.  He  levied 
tribute  upon  every  province  of  European  music  to  en- 
rich and  vary  the  singing  of  the  churches  in  his  native 
land.  Gregorian  chants,  oratorios,  operas,  popular  in- 
strumental music,  popular  songs  of  every  character,  fugi- 
tive issues  of  German  and  Swiss  folk-songs, — all  yielded 
their  treasures  to  his  keen  insight  and  skill  of  adaptation. 
"  Dennis,"  "  Antioch,"  "  Hamburg,"  "  Ariel,"  "  Olmutz," 
"  Mendon," — what  a  noble  list  of  immortal  tunes  it  is  ! 
Everything  was  grist  to  the  mill  of  his  psalm  and  hymn 
tune  books,  and  out  of  the  great  mass  of  original,  se- 
lected and  arranged  material  he  supplied,  the  people's 
taste  and  sense  of  appropriateness  and  practicability  have 
slowly  made  the  selection  of  the  several  score  of  tunes 
that  are  the  abiding  heritage,  not  of  the  American 
churches  alone,  but  almost  of  the  Church  universal. 

This  broad  mental  hospitality  of  Lowell  Mason,  George 


90  PKACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

Kingsley,  and  their  contemporaries,  has  given  a  variety, 
a  pliability  and  an  adaptableness  to  American  hymnody 
that  makes  it  peculiarly  practicable  and  useful.  What 
Dr.  Breed  criticises  in  Lowell  Mason,  that  he  has  not 
"  formulated  any  positive  principle,"  is  really  his  glory. 
He  founded  no  school  with  pronounced  limitations,  ap- 
pealing only  to  a  particular  type  of  mind.  He  was  too 
vital,  too  catholic,  too  practical,  to  hamper  himself  with 
formulae. 


VIII 

AMERICAN  SPIRITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS 

IF  a  pronouncedly  characteristic  type  of  religious 
music  is  desired,  why  not  turn  to  the  genuinely 
American  "  spirituals  "  of  the  Middle  and  Southern 
States,  preceding  and  contemporaneous  with  the  reforma- 
tion led  by  Lowell  Mason  ?  While  the  Congregational- 
ists  of  New  England  were  singing  their  fugue  tunes, 
minor  as  well  as  major,  the  Methodists,  Baptists,  United 
Brethren  (not  Moravians),  and  other  aggressively  mis- 
sionary denominations  in  the  Middle  and  Southern  States 
were  developing  an  entirely  different  type  of  music. 
Unfortunately  very  few  of  these  "  spirituals  "  were  ever 
written  out  and  published,  and  fewer  still  have  survived 
the  utter  transformation  of  conditions  during  the  last  fifty 
years.  Then  there  has  been  an  attitude  of  deprecation 
towards  them  on  the  part  of  the  churches  like  that  of 
educated  coloured  people  towards  the  Jubilee  songs. 
This  attitude  is  all  the  more  unfortunate  because  it  is 
everywhere  recognized  that  the  melodies  that  arise  among 
the  people  and  are  adopted  by  them  more  or  less  per- 
manently have  a  vitality  and  genuineness  lacking  in  more 
ornate  or  studied  music.  Thibaut  says,  "  All  the 
melodies  that  spring  from  the  people,  or  are  retained  by 
them  as  favourites,  are  generally  chaste,  and  simple  in 
nature  like  a  child's."  These  "  spirituals  "  are  genuine 
"  folk-songs  "  originated  and  loved  by  a  stratum  in  our 

9i 


92  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

American  social  life  analogous  to  the  peasants  of  Europe. 
The  great  danger  is  that  nearly  all  record  of  a  very  inter- 
esting, if  not  intrinsically  valuable  product  of  the  Ameri- 
can musical  church  life  will  be  lost. 

The  almost  amusing  result  of  this  obscurity  is  the 
credit  given  to  the  negro  race  of  the  South  for  this  class 
of  music.  The  Jubilee  songs,  in  so  far  as  they  have  had 
their  origin  among  the  coloured  people,  are  the  direct  off- 
spring of  the  white  man's  "  spiritual."  Indeed  many  of 
the  songs  sung  by  them  are  "  spirituals  "  borrowed  from 
their  white  brethren,  the  rhythmical  swing  being  some- 
what emphasized.  The  themes  of  Dvorak's  American 
Symphony  are  not  Negro,  therefore,  but  Caucasian,  and 
the  result  more  directly  American  than  Dvorak  himself 
knew.  Foster,  Hanby,  and  other  popular  song  writers  of 
the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  did  not  get  their 
inspiration  from  the  slaves,  as  has  been  stated  on  high 
authority,  but  from  these  "  spirituals."  I  have  before  me 
a  copy  of  a  collection  of  the  words  of  "  spirituals  "  com- 
piled by  William  Hanby,  the  father  of  B.  R.  Hanby,  the 
author  of  "  Darling  Nellie  Gray."  The  negroes  were 
simply  imitators,  even  in  the  minor  strains  that  have  been 
pathetically  characterized  as  the  cry  of  the  sorrows  of 
their  captivity. 

The  number  of  these  "  spirituals  "  was  large.  I  have 
one  collection  of  words,  published  in  Philadelphia  in  1858, 
which  contains  over  three  hundred  choruses  alone. 
Different  denominations  and  states  had  repertoires  of 
their  own,  so  that  I  have  reason  to  believe  there  were 
thousands  of  them. 

Some  preacher  or  local  leader  had  an  inspiration  in  the 
furnace  heat  of  a  meeting  and  produced  a  new  chorus 
that  was  connected  with  an  old  hymn.     If  it  struck  fire, 


SPIEITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS  93 

it  was  carried  to  the  next  camp-meeting,  or  caught  up  by 
the  itinerant  or  presiding  elder  who  sang  it  wherever  he 
went  and  so  it  was  widely  introduced.  As  it  was  thus 
orally  transmitted,  little  changes  were  often  made  in  the 
melody  until  it  met  the  needs  of  the  popular  conscious- 
ness. It  then  had  its  little  day  of  use  and  finally  dropped 
out,  being  replaced  by  a  new  one. 

Speaking  subjectively,  like  a  higher  critic,  I  should  say 
that  the  "  spirituals  "  originated  in  the  old  Scotch  songs 
and  English  ballads  brought  over  by  the  colonists.  Many 
of  them  are  decidedly  Scotch  in  their  absence  of  the 
seventh  of  the  scale  and  the  emphasis  of  the  sixth.  I  am 
equally  certain  that  later  some  of  them  were  brought 
over  from  England  by  Methodist  immigrants  from 
Asbury  onward.  But  there  is  nothing  Scotch  or  Eng- 
lish in  the  rhythmical  momentum  of  these  old  choruses. 
That  is  characteristically  American.  Many  of  them 
adopted  the  tunes  and  parodied  the  words  of  American 
popular  songs.  Indeed  the  introduction  to  the  large  col- 
lection alluded  to  above  urges  "  the  salutary  tendency  of 
an  attempt  to  redeem  our  best  popular  airs  by  adapting 
them  to  the  songs  of  Zion."  The  editor  also  quotes 
with  approval  "  the  language  of  an  old  divine,  '  Why, 
there  are  only  seven  or  eight  notes  to  all  the  tunes  in  the 
world,  and  they  all  belong  to  Jesus  Christ ;  so  that  if  the 
devil  wants  any  fresh  ones,  he  must  make  them.'  " 

Some  of  these  "  spirituals  "  are  sacred  ballads  and  were 
sung  by  the  preachers  as  solos.  An  itinerant  who  could 
sing  solos  was  assured  a  double  welcome  and  a  double 
harvest  of  souls.  There  were  a  good  many  grace  notes 
and  slurred  passing  notes  in  their  solos  that  it  would  be 
difficult  to  reproduce  on  a  staff.  They  were  frequently 
narratives  of  personal  experience : 


94  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

"  Ye  people,  that  wonder  at  me  and  my  ways, 
And  oft  with  astonishment  on  me  do  gaze, 
Come,  lend  your  attention,  and  I  will  relate 
My  past  exercises  and  my  present  state," 


and  so  on  through  eight  stanzas. 

Another  favourite  one  was  entitled  "  Christ  in  the 
Garden."  It  is  a  commingling  of  a  description  of 
Gethsemane  and  of  the  singer's  conversion.  The  style 
of  the  twelve  stanzas  may  be  judged  from  the  two  which 
I  quote : 

"  Christ  in  the  Garden. 

"  While  nature  was  sinking  in  stillness  to  rest, 
The  last  beams  of  daylight  shone  dim  in  the  west ; 
O'er  fields  by  the  moonlight,  my  wandering  feet 
Then  led  me  to  muse  in  some  lonely  retreat. 

11  While  passing  a  Garden,  I  paused  then  to  hear 
A  voice,  faint  and  plaintive,  from  one  who  was  there ; 
The  voice  of  the  sufFrer  affected  my  heart, 
In  agony  pleading  the  poor  sinner's  part," 

and  so  on  for  ten  stanzas  more.  I  well  remember  hear- 
ing an  old  local  preacher  sing  all  the  twelve  stanzas  with 
great  earnestness  over  forty  years  ago  in  the  foothills  of 
the  Alleghanies.  I  reproduce  two  tunes  to  which  these 
words  were  often  sung,  but  the  one  I  heard  was  to  my 
boyish  ears  infinitely  more  pathetic  than  these  seem  to 
me  now.  I  regret  that  my  memory  fails  to  reproduce  it. 
I  remember  that  it  was  minor  and  intensely  sad,  full  of 
slurrings  and  quaverings.  The  melodies  here  given  are 
characteristic  of  the  major  melodies  then  in  use,  but  are 
possibly  from  secular  sources,  rather  than  of  genuine 
"  spiritual "  origin. 


SPIBITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS 


95 


I.    In  the  Garden. 


Arr.  by  E. 


S.  L. 

Fine. 


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in 


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96  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

Sometimes  these  solos  were  wholly  hortatory  : 

Yo«ng:    People   AIL  Arr.byE.  S.  L. 

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SPIEITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS 


97 


Then  there  were  hymns  without  choruses,  but  with  a 
typically  "  spiritual  "  tune.  Some  of  these  were  really 
deserving.     For  instance, 

My    Beloved*  Arr.byE.S.  L. 

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98 


PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 


An  even  better  tune  is  the  "spiritual "  melody  to  "  How 
firm  a  foundation." 


Foundation* 


Arr.  by  E.  S.  L. 


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Other  still  popular  tunes  of  "  spiritual "  origin  are 
u  Loving  Kindness  "  and  "  Fountain." 

A  more  common  form  of  these  "  spirituals  "  was  a 
verse  and  a  chorus.     Sometimes  a  standard  hymn  had  a 


SPIRITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS 


99 


new  tune  and  a  corresponding  chorus  given  it.  "  Jesus, 
my  All,  to  heaven  is  gone,"  and  "  Come,  Thou  Fount  of 
every  blessing,"  were  particular  favourites.  The  tune  of 
the  stanza  and  that  of  the  chorus  were  frequently  the 
same,  except  that  the  rhythm  of  the  chorus  was  made 
more  pronounced  by  giving  more  syllables  to  the  line. 
Then  there  were  "  spirituals  "  like  "  Palms  of  Victory," 
which  is  even  yet  used  in  many  churches,  in  which  there 
was  an  original  hymn  with  its  appropriate  refrain.  A 
more  common  form  was  the  interlinear  refrain.  Here  is 
an  example  that  must  have  had  extraordinary  effectiveness. 


I 


Save,  Mighty  Lord* 

.iii 


4 — h — m # * 


±*U 


Arr.  by  E.  S.  L. 


% 


fe^=F 


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J      J      J 


3=2 


¥ 


t.  Show  pit  -  y,    Lord,   O   Lord,  for  -  give !      Save,  might -y 

D.S. — Save,  might  -  y 


B^^a=f^^E=^P 


M  lh  J    J  I  £    J    J    J  J    1    4h 
gi    i~J  i    M  f    3    3    T\  1    3    fl 


Sav   -    iour! 
Sav  -    iour! 


m* 


±=*-~ 


Let       a        re  -   pent  -  ing      reb  -    el      live, 
Oh,    send    con  -  vert  -  ing    pow  -  er    down, 


t=t 


t=t 


i 


Fine.    Choeus. 


D.S. 


3S 


F=? 


f 


mm 


Save,     might 
Save,     might 


y       Lord ! 
y       Lord ! 


Save !      oh,        save ! 


E 


-£2_i. 


II 


f=f 


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100 


PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 


Less  than  thirty  years  ago  I  heard  the  following  "  spirit- 
ual "  still  sung  spontaneously  in  Southern  Ohio.  It  has 
the  genuine  pentatonal  characteristics  which  mark  ab- 
original music  every  where  when  it  follows  a  definite  scale. 
The  effect  of  it  was  very  powerful.  It  had  great  dignity 
as  well  as  force. 


I  Can't  Stay  Away* 


Arr.  by  E.  S.  L. 


± 


=£=£ 


^ie 


*=*=3 


MA 


r  i    *■  *  * 

I     can't  stay   an  -  y      Ion  - 

U-JL2  Ki 


^=2= 


t=L 


g"» 


S 


1=F 


can't    stay     a  -  way! 


r=N 


1 — i- 


■t— t- 


1 


I 


i    i 


¥=*- 


u 


J=T 


1      l>I^t=4 


Fine. 

:zi: 


i 


S=* 


^E£ 


The   Gos-pel  ship   is     sail-  ing 


S 


#=* 


by, 


'•3-" 

can't  stay    a  -  way? 


fczt 


t=t 


H— ^2 


^ —  i — # 


I 


7=3- 


4 


£^1 


W 


=t=± 


f     '      ' 

Je  -  sus,  my  All,  to  heav'n  is  gone 


rnF 


tpU 


I 


can't    stay     a  -  way! 


-i — r 


D.C. 


i 


p 


r-v  Fs- 


■H-* 


*=± 


ttr* 


He  whom  I  fixed  my  hopes  up  -  on,      I 


"Si". 

can't  stay  a  -  way ! 


m£trTHi:mmmm 


t — t    i  xf  ' 


SPIRITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS 


101 


Still  another  form  was  the  one  largely  used  as  a  model 
by  the  negroes,  in  which  a  single  line  is  repeated  three 
times  and  with  another  line,  which  is  usually  a  refrain, 
makes  the  stanza.  The  following  is  a  fine  example  in 
the  regular  major  scale.  There  is  an  interesting  de- 
parture from  the  regular  melodic  form,  there  being  ten 
instead  of  eight  measures.  This  departure  from  the 
usual  form  seems  to  me  fully  justified  by  the  effect. 


O  Brother,  fee  Faithful, 

0             1           1       i       1 

Arr.  by  E.  S.  L. 

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A       J      I     r 

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a.  • 

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eJ  .      m      1        ! 

1.  O           broth-  er,     be      faith    - 

2.  0              sis  -  ter,    be      faith    - 

3.  There       we   shall  see       Je     - 

4.  There'll    be     no  more    part    - 

ful! 
ful! 
sus! 
ing! 

1         1 

O       broth  -  er,     be 

O          sis  -  ter,     be 

There      we  shall  see 

There'll     be     no   more 

A.    J   *   - 

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"here 
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be 

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ter,      be         faith   - 

shall     see          Je     - 

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Faith-  ful,  faith-  ful,  faith  -  ful,Till    we  all 

Faith-  ful,  faith-  ful,  faith  -  ful, Till    we  all 

Je  -  sus,  Je  -  sus,   Je  -  sus,  When  we  all 

Part  -  ing,  part-  ing,  part-  ing,When  we  all 

-&-     -p-    -&-     -0-    -&-            ,.,      "f*-  -&" 


get 
get 
get 
get 


home, 
home, 
home, 
home. 


m. 


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102 


PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 


As  has  already  been  stated,  in  many  of  these  "  spirituals  " 
the  sixth  note  of  the  scale  has  a  predominance  that  gives 
a  weird  effect  to  what  is  otherwise  a  major  melody.  As 
good  an  example  as  any  is  the  chorus, 


I  Will  Arise* 
^1 


m 


Arr.  by  E.  S.  L. 


55E 


f 


#— 


— tf 


Chorus. — I         will        a  -  rise       and 
I.  Come       ye  sin  -  ners, 

*    I       i 


m 


i 


go         to  Je    -    sus, 

poor      and      need    -    y, 


fc-4: 


t 


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t=4 


i 


Ttr 


1i=zf 


3tT 


^3 


He   will  embrace  me      in     His 
Weak   and     wounded,    sick   and 


arms;     In       the    arms     of 
sore,      Je   -   sus    read  -  y 


t   L  \  9  ~r 

E3EEEEEE 


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F-fHHH^ 


p 


ifefee 


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a 


r-^r* 


v  -; 


my   dear      Sav-iour,    Oh,   there 
stands    to      save  you,     Full      of 


are     ten  -  thou-sand  charms, 
pit  -   y,      love    and  pow'r. 


±=± 


i 


fr  p    F        =t 


t=F 


i — r 


f=T 


f=f=f 


Hundreds  of  thousands  of  persons  have  walked  to  the 
"  mourner's  bench  "  while  the  church  was  singing  this 
urgent  and  almost  hypnotic  appeal,   for   it   was   very 


SPIRITUALS  A1STD  GOSPEL  SONGS 


103 


widely  and  frequently  used.  Then  there  are  others  with 
as  plain  a  major  diatonic  melody  as  a  modern  Gospel 
song  ! 


I  Want  to  Go. 


Ait.  by  E.  S.  L. 


iN^P 


Chorus. — I        want  to    go,  I        want  to      go,        I 

I .  There       is  a     land        of        pure  de  -  light,  Where 


P 


3=T 


■5- 


*-* 


want       to     go     there     too!  I       want      to         go     where 

saints      im  -  mor  -  tal      reign ;      In    -     fi  -    nite      day      ex  - 


E^ 


i=i. 


PI 


Je  -    sus       is,  I       want         to     go         there        too. 

cWdes   the    night,    And    pleas  -  ures  ban    -    ish  pain. 


Plain  minor  tunes  are  plentiful,  as  they  are  in  both  the 
New  England  and  English  hymnody.  Probably  investi- 
gation would  show  that  many  of  them  came  from  these 
sources.  The  minor  chorus  is  also  very  frequent.  The 
minor  scale  used  was  sometimes  the  harmonic,  and  some- 
times what  may  be  called  the  natural — i.  e.y  without  ac- 
cidentals— never  the  melodic.  The  most  common,  per- 
haps, was  a  mingling  of  minor  and  major  phrases,  the 
hymn  line  being  major,  the  interlinear  refrain  minor, 
and  the  succeeding  full  chorus  combining  both.  The 
seventh  of  the  minor  scale  sometimes  was  sharped,  but 
usually  not.     A  very  excellent  specimen  is  the  following : 


104  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

In  the  Morning.  Arr.byE.  s.  l. 


¥=f^ 


fc* 


•I 


Oh, 

I'm 

I'll 

Where 

A 

Will 

Oh, 

When 


come      and 
bound     fair 
join 
sin 

few      more 
land       my 
what 
I 


m 


J3L* 


£=£ 


hSE 


i 


2E£ 


ii3   " 

For  we'll     all      rise 


to  -  geth  -  er      in      the     morn  -  ing, 


w. 


}ftt 


-j — i- 


1 


^ 


3^-w- 


£3 


V— -v- 


Choeus. 


■M — I- 


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afcidbj^ 


In    the  morn-ing^!  what  a  beau-  ti  -  ful  morn-  ing  that   will    be, 


'y   1/ 


1 


-• — *- 


ttt     £    £=rj 

-• — # — # » # # — 0 


$==?= 


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When  we      all       rise 

in     r\ 


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to- geth -er      in     the     morn   -    ing! 

^   ^    ^    ^    .       .        i 


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SPIEITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS  105 

The  appeal  to  the  nerves  of  many  of  these  old  "  spirituals  " 
was  something  extraordinary  among  a  people  hidden 
away  among  the  mountains  and  valleys  of  the  great  Ap- 
palachian range.  This  music  suited  the  people  among 
whom  it  was  produced  and  sung.  It  effected  the  results 
religious  music  is  intended  to  secure  and  hence  was  good 
church  music,  poor  as  it  was  from  an  artistic  stand- 
point. Even  from  that  standpoint  it  has  some  claim 
on  our  attention  as  the  unique  product  of  a  unique 
age.1 

I  should  not  have  considered  these  "  spirituals  "  at  such 
extreme  length,  were  not  the  subject  so  obscure  and  the 
materials  so  inaccessible,  and  especially  were  not  the 
Gospel  song  the  direct  outgrowth  of  them.  Dr.  Breed's 
statement  in  his  book  on  "  Hymns  and  Hymn  Tunes  "  that 
the  Gospel  song  was  born  in  Newcastle,  England,  in 
1873,  is  distinctly  amusing.  He  might  almost  as  truth- 
fully say  that  it  was  born  in  1644,  because  a  book  was 
issued  in  that  year  entitled  "  Gospel  Music."  The  fact 
is,  Sankey  is  not  the  father  of  the  Gospel  song,  as 
Dr.  Breed's  account  seems  to  imply.  The  songs  that 
won  the  earnest  heart  of  England  in  1873,  with  but  a  few 
exceptions,  had  been  written  years  before  by  Bradbury, 
Lowry,  Doane,  Root,  Bliss  and  others.  Several  years 
before  Moody  had  found  Sankey,  Chaplain  (later  Bishop) 
McCabe  had  issued  "  Winnowed  Hymns "  containing 
very  largely  the  same  selection  of  songs  as  those  later 
used   by   Sankey  and   it  had  had  a  very  wide  use  in 

1  These  original  melodies  were  sung  as  unisons.  In  order  to  give  the 
reader  a  proper  sense  of  the  tonalities  and  underlying  chords  of  these 
unisons,  I  have  arranged  them  in  a  harmonized  form.  It  will  be  under- 
stood, therefore,  that  the  harmony  is  mine  and  not  a  part  of  the  original 
spiritual. 


106  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

America.  Moody  and  Sankey's  evangelistic  campaign 
in  England  simply  called  the  world's  attention  to  the  ex- 
istence of  this  popular  sacred  music. 

It  is  difficult  to  define  the  exact  period  when  the 
"  spiritual "  became  a  Gospel  song,  but  the  transition 
occurred  between  1850  and  1865.  Dadmun,  Horace 
Waters,  Asa  Hull,  Hartsough,  Philip  Phillips,  O'Kane,— 
all  helped  in  the  change.  The  "  spiritual  "  was  simply  a 
melody  and  could  indulge  in  a  good  many  vagaries  which 
it  would  be  difficult  to  harmonize.  Wherever  an  organ 
or  melodeon  was  introduced,  wherever  the  singing  school 
with  its  four-part  singing  was  organized,  the  "  spiritual," 
in  so  far  as  it  was  minor  in  character  and  its  harmonies 
were  not  simple  and  self-evident,  was  crowded  out  and 
gave  place  to  the  Gospel  and  Sunday-school  song.  As 
we  have  seen,  even  among  the  "  spirituals,"  there  had 
been  songs  that  were  so  modern  in  style  that  they  have 
been  adopted  as  Gospel  songs. 

The  Gospel  song  has  inherited  from  the  "  spiritual  " 
its  chorus  and  interlinear  refrain,  its  free  rhythms,  its 
repetition  of  words  in  the  chorus,  its  simplicity  of  melody, 
its  harmonic  progression  and  balance, — in  general,  its 
hold  upon  and  influence  over  the  people.  It  has  lost  a 
good  deal  of  the  sheer  subjectivity  of  the  "  spiritual,"  as 
well  as  its  sentimentality  and  diffuseness.  The  Gospel 
song  usually  has  one  definite  thought  and  expresses  it  in 
three  or  four  verses  instead  of  eight  to  twelve  as  did 
many  "  spirituals."  It  has  also  lost  its  weird  minor 
strains,  its  mingled  major  and  minor  phrases,  and  its 
characteristic  use  of  the  sixth  and  avoidance  of  the 
seventh.  Whatever  its  rhythmical  vagaries  may  occa- 
sionally be,  it  is  plain  diatonic  music. 

In  many  of  the  Gospel  songs  the  rhythm  is  no  more 


SPIRITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS  107 

pronounced  than  in  the  average  hymn  tune.  "  I  Need 
Thee  Every  Hour,"  "  Almost  Persuaded,"  "  More  Love 
to  Thee,"  "  Trust  and  Obey,"  "  It  is  Well  with  My  Soul," 
and  "  He  Leadeth  Me,"  do  not  appeal  to  the  motor 
nerves  in  the  slightest  degree.  The  rhythm  of  many 
others,  like  "  Rescue  the  Perishing,"  "  Every  Day  and 
Hour,"  «  I  am  Thine,  O  Lord,"  "  Thou  Thinkest,  Lord, 
of  Me,"  while  a  little  more  in  evidence,  is  still  as  digni- 
fied as  that  of  "  Harwell "  or  "  Antioch."  Indeed,  you 
may  say  that  the  Gospel  songs  actually  accepted  by  the 
American  churches  for  devotional  use  are  as  inoffensive 
in  rhythm  as  the  hymn  tunes  sung  for  the  same  purpose. 
In  making  such  comparisons  we  are  using  the  best  of  the 
hymn  tunes,  and  hence  we  are  under  obligation  to  set 
against  them  only  the  best  of  the  Gospel  songs. 

When  we  take  up  the  use  of  the  more  rhythmical  Gos- 
pel songs,  those  whose  lack  of  dignity  and  strength 
really  justifies  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to  their  value,  we 
must  emphasize  the  applied  side  of  church  music.  It  is 
no  longer  a  question  of  artistic  values,  but  of  practical 
results  in  a  given  congregation.  Among  a  people  whose 
social  life  is  conventional,  among  whom  the  sense  of  per- 
sonal dignity  has  become  spontaneous,  it  would  be  very 
foolish  to  sing  "  Leaning  on  the  Everlasting  Arms  "  with 
its  pronounced  "  spiritual "  rhythm.  The  same  song  in 
an  unconventional  city  mission  or  middle  class  church, 
or  in  a  village  or  rural  community  would  be  very  useful. 
Indeed  in  many  congregations  it  might  be  "  contra-indi- 
cated "  (to  use  a  medical  expression)  in  the  morning  and 
"  indicated  "  in  the  evening  service. 

Given  an  unconventional  popular  audience  that  is  pas- 
sive, if  not  actually  hostile,  and  I  should  prescribe  an  in- 
troductory song  service  of  three  or  more  such  rhythmical 


108  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

songs  in  order  to  secure  the  nervous  preparation  and 
psychical  organization  without  which  all  the  rest  of  the 
service  will  be  useless.  Here  "  Pass  Me  Not,"  "  Bringing 
in  the  Sheaves,"  "  Revive  Us  Again,"  "  Christ  Receiveth 
Sinful  Men,"  «  Oh,  That  Will  be  Glory,"  «  The  Old  Time 
Religion,"  and  other  like  songs  will  be  found  very 
"  warming."  For  this  purpose  you  do  not  want  tender, 
intimate  hymns.  Indeed,  I  have  occasionally  had  a  sense 
of  participating  in  a  sacrilege  when  under  such  circum- 
stances I  have  sung  "  Alas  and  did  my  Saviour  bleed," 
or  "  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  Soul." 

The  Gospel  song  is  often  condemned  because  it  is  so 
short-lived  and  temporary.  That  really  is  one  of  its  great 
advantages.  The  very  newness  of  a  fresh  Gospel  song, 
like  the  newness  of  Luther's  chorals  when  they  were  first 
introduced,  or  the  newness  of  the  metrical  psalms  and 
psalm  tunes  compiled  by  Calvin,  is  one  of  its  strongest 
appeals.  Its  rapid  rise  and  equally  rapid  decay  give  an 
exactness  to  its  expression  of  the  religious  feelings  of  its 
particular  generation  no  survival  from  a  preceding  gener- 
ation can  have. 

The  reason  for  the  short  life  of  a  rhythmical  song  is 
partly  physiological.  Grant  Allen,  a  writer  of  valuable 
scientific  books,  but  more  widely  known  as  a  novelist, 
says  in  his  "  Physiological  ^Esthetics  "  that  "  it  is  a  com- 
mon experience  that  continued  stimulation  of  a  nerve 
deadens  it,  after  a  short  time,  to  the  action  of  the  stimu- 
lus." The  "  Laocoon  "  tires  one  more  quickly  than  the 
"  Apollo  Belvidere,"  because  of  the  strong  action  it  por- 
trays. In  the  same  way  also,  we  weary  of  a  rapid, 
rhythmical  piece  of  music  more  quickly  than  we  do  of  a 
slow  one  of  equal  charm.  The  nerve  stimulus  or  impres- 
sion is  much  less  in  the  slow  movement.     That  is  to  say, 


SPIRITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS  109 

the  very  intensity  of  the  impression  made  by  a  Gospel 
song  shortens  the  time  of  its  usefulness. 

Like  the  old  "  spiritual,"  the  Gospel  song  is  emotional 
in  origin  and  purpose.  The  emphasis  of  one  idea,  the 
repetition  of  words  in  stanza  and  in  chorus,  the  choice  of 
subjective  experience  in  its  themes,  the  general  rhyth- 
mical character,  the  high,  exhilarating  notes  of  the  chorus, 
all  make  for  emotion.  But  as  the  expression  and 
creation  of  emotion  is  the  primary  purpose  of  all  poetry 
and  song,  this  does  not  seem  to  be  an  objection,  but  a 
virtue.  But  there  are  emotions  and  emotions.  Is  the 
average  Gospel  song  really  calculated  to  stimulate  a 
genuinely  religious  emotion?  Allowing  that  the  very 
best  of  them  approach  so  nearly  to  the  dignity  and  merit 
of  a  hymn  tune  as  to  be  worthy  of  use  with  due  discre- 
tion, are  we  not  justified  in  rejecting  all  the  rest  as  vulgar 
and  debasing  ? 

The  affirmative  chorus  of  "  ayes "  from  high  class 
musicians  and  musical  connoisseurs  on  the  one  hand  and 
from  the  liturgically  inclined  among  the  clergy  and  laity 
on  the  other  is  very  earnest,  if  not  heated.  Professor 
Dickinson  of  Oberlin  reasons  thus  with  the  churches 
who  give  the  Gospel  song  a  prominent  place  in  their 
work.  "  Those  churches  which  rely  mainly  upon  the 
Gospel  songs  should  soberly  consider  if  it  is  profitable  in 
the  long  run  to  maintain  a  standard  of  religious  melody 
and  verse  far  below  that  which  prevails  in  secular  music 
and  literature."  Does  he  mean  to  say  that  our  Gospel 
songs  are  below  the  standard  of  "  There's  a  Hot  Time  " 
or  "  Nelly  was  a  Lady  "  or  other  songs  current  among 
the  class  of  people  among  whom  Gospel  songs  are  used  ? 
Oh,  no  !  The  standard  to  which  he  refers  is  that  of 
Milton  and  Tennyson,  Handel  and  Beethoven.     Accord- 


110  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

ing  to  such  a  standard  where  do  James  Whitcomb  Riley 
and  Rudyard  Kipling,  or  DeKoven  and  Parker,  or  even 
McDowell,  come  in  ?  Do  I  need  to  emphasize  the  un- 
reasonableness of  such  a  comparison  ? 

Let  us  hear  from  another  of  the  "  ayes  "  on  this  ques- 
tion of  rejecting  the  great  mass  of  current  Gospel  songs. 
"  Such  hymns  may  be  used,  perhaps,  among  the  degraded 
class  who  are  drawn  to  street  services,  or  they  may  please 
the  rough  crowd  which  bawls  of  salvation  among  the 
tents,  but  the  taste  of  church  people  should  be  cultivated 
by  avoiding  all  contact  with  music  of  a  vulgarizing 
type."  You  can  fairly  see  the  repellent  gesture  of  the 
Pharisee  as  he  draws  his  robe  about  him  lest  it  be  defiled 
by  the  publicans  and  sinners  who  sing  Gospel  songs  ! 

But  what  about  the  "  degraded  class  "  and  "  the  rough 
crowd  which  bawls  of  salvation," — have  they  no  rights  ? 
Are  they  to  wait  until  they  have  been  educated  and  cul- 
tivated sufficiently  to  enjoy  and  profit  by  more  noble 
church  music  before  they  shall  be  allowed  to  sing  sacred 
songs  ?  If  the  workers  who,  like  their  Master,  have  gone 
among  them  "  to  seek  and  to  save  the  lost "  are  not  to  be 
allowed  to  use  music  these  unfortunates  can  appreciate 
and  sing,  how  are  they  ever  to  be  saved  and  lifted  and 
cultivated  sufficiently  to  sing  and  enjoy  the  nobler  church 
music  ? 

But  when  as  moderator  I  put  the  negative,  I  hear  a 
stentorian  "  No,"  that  comes  from  all  parts  of  the  earth, 
protesting  against  the  exclusion  of  Gospel  songs.  The 
pastor  needs  them  in  his  prayer-meetings  and  special 
services  ;  the  evangelist,  whose  path  can  be  traced  by  the 
conversions  that  spring  up  by  the  thousands  under  his 
work,  finds  them  one  of  the  chief  means  of  success  ;  the 
humble  worker  in  the  slums  declares  he  would  be  help- 


SPIKITUALS  AND  GOSPEL  SONGS         111 

less  without  them ;  the  missionary  in  foreign  lands  finds 
them  the  "  open  sesame  "  to  the  interest  and  sympathy 
of  the  benighted  people  among  whom  he  works. 

To  read  some  of  the  laments  of  musical  idealists  over 
the  class  of  music  used  in  the  churches,  one  might  be 
impressed  that  the  Christian  church  was  in  a  state  of 
moral  and  religious  decay,  filled  with  shallow  and  insincere 
religiosity,  utterly  lacking  in  reverence,  void  of  dignity, 
given  over  to  weak  sentimentality  and  crass  banality,  to 
cheap  vulgarity  and  grasping  commercialism.  When  we 
look  at  the  facts  in  the  case  we  find  the  church  most 
spiritual,  most  aggressive,  and  most  successful  when  it  is 
using  the  popular  sacred  songs  most  widely  and  most 
earnestly.  We  find,  furthermore,  that  the  churches  who 
do  not  use  them  are  the  least  spiritual,  the  least  aggres- 
sive, the  least  successful !  When  I  say  least  successful,  I 
do  not  mean  in  numbers,  wealth,  or  social  standing,  of 
course,  but  in  the  work  of  propaganda  in  which  lies  the 
heart  and  essence  of  the  life  of  the  Christian  church. 

To  defend  Gospel  songs  in  all  their  manifestations 
would  be  as  foolish  as  it  is  to  condemn  them  indiscrimi- 
nately. I  am  perfectly  willing  to  allow  that  many  of 
them  are  utterly  unworthy  of  use.  The  churches  some- 
times are  beguiled  by  a  transient  charm,  or  by  the  per- 
sistent pushing  of  an  interested  composer  or  publisher, 
into  giving  such  a  song  a  passing  popularity ;  but  how 
soon  it  is  forgotten  ! 

The  true  attitude  is  to  use  discrimination,  judging 
not  classes  and  styles  of  church  music  by  personal  tastes, 
but  individual  songs  by  their  adaptation  to  the  work  to 
be  done  under  the  given  circumstances  among  the  given 
people.  Here  again  there  is  no  place  for  rigidly  for- 
mulated standards,  but  for  the  most  careful  canvassing  of 


112  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

the  situation  in  hand,  of  the  resources  it  presents  and  of 
the  ends  to  be  accomplished,  and  for  an  intelligent  dis- 
crimination in  the  means  to  be  used  and  in  the  methods 
by  which  they  are  to  be  applied. 


IX 

GERMAN  CHORALS  AND  MODERN  ENGLISH 
HYMN  TUNES 

A  PROFESSOR  of  music  recently  said,  "  It  is 
perfectly  clear  that  the  nearer  our  approach  to 
the  stately  chorals  of  the  German  churches,  the 
greater  is  the  possibility  of  such  uniformity  of  utterance 
and  volume  of  sound  in  the  singing  as  are  vital  to  'its  ef- 
fectiveness." He  was  a  professional  musician  whose 
whole  horizon  was  bounded  by  musical "  effectiveness  "  ; 
he  had  no  conception  of  the  final  religious  purpose.  He 
overlooked  the  fact  that  the  practical  value  of  a  tune  is 
not  determined  finally  by  its  intrinsic  value,  nor  even  by 
its  practical  value  in  another  country  or  in  another  age, 
but  by  its  efficiency  in  the  particular  congregation  where 
it  is  to  be  used. 

"  Ein  Feste  Burg  "  by  Martin  Luther  is  intrinsically  a 
strong,  expressive  melody  nobly  harmonized.  It  was  the 
Battle  Hymn  of  the  Reformation  and  of  the  political 
and  national  struggles  that  followed  it.  It  still  holds  its 
place  in  the  affection,  admiration,  and  religious  conscious- 
ness of  German  Protestantism.  To  hear  it  sung  by  a 
great  body  of  German  soldiers,  as  I  did  in  the  Garnisons- 
Kirche  at  Bonn,  is  to  be  lifted  into  the  seventh  heaven  of 
noble  ecstasy,  to  get  a  new  grasp  upon  the  majestic  power 
of  an  invincible  God.  But  when  an  American  congrega- 
tion feebly  pipes  the  majestic  melody  three  or  four  times 
as  fast  as  the  German  people  habitually  sing  it,  its  locks  of 

JI3 


114  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

power  and  dignity  are  shorn  and  it  becomes  a  blinded 
Sampson  feebly  grinding  corn.  Yet  undiscriminating 
musicians  and  preachers  try  to  force  their  people  to  sing 
this  thoroughly  alien  tune,  simply  because  it  is  good 
music  intrinsically ;  then  they  wonder  why  the  effort  is  a 
failure.  The  same  is  only  a  little  less  true  of  "  Nun 
Danket  Alle  Gott,"  another  great  German  choral. 

Nicolai's  "  Wachet  auf,  ruft  uns  die  Stimme,"  "  Sleepers, 
Wake,"  called  u  the  King  of  German  chorals,"  as  it  is 
found  in  the  German  choral  books,  not  as  Mendelssohn 
arranged  it  for  his  oratorio,  is  really  superior  to  either  in 
its  majesty  and  pomp,  having  an  elevation  and  dignity 
combined  with  a  richness  and  variety  of  melodic  invention 
and  harmonic  strength  that  vainly  seek  their  equal  else- 
where. It  is  sung  with  transcendent  effectiveness  by  large 
German  congregations,  but  an  American  audience  would 
be  crushed  by  its  very  greatness. 

Dr.  J.  S.  Curwen  once  tried  the  experiment  of  singing 
another  choral  by  the  same  composer  which  is  recognized 
as  "  the  Queen  of  German  chorals,"  "  Wie  schbn  leuch't 
uns  der  Morgenstern,"  with  an  English  audience  gathered 
to  hear  his  lecture  on  German  church  music.  The  au- 
dience sang  it  in  unison.  "  They  were  instructed  to  re- 
main seated,  to  give  no  accent  to  the  music,  every  note 
was  to  be  heavy,  and  held  out  to  its  full  length.  The 
rate  of  singing  was  to  be  M.  30  (/.  e.t  two  seconds  to  the 
beat),  or  rather  more  than  two  beats  of  a  healthy  pulse 
to  each  note.  Between  the  lines  there  were  to  be  pauses, 
filled  up  by  the  instrumental  interludes  which  are  com- 
monly used  and  printed  in  the  books.  The  organist  was 
directed  to  use  the  great  organ  throughout,  and  to  turn 
on  the  sound  as  loud  as  he  pleased.  In  this  style  one 
verse  was  sung  to  the  English  translation,  ■  How  lovely 


GERMAN  CHOEALS  115 

shines  the  morning  star.'  All  present,  who  had  heard 
Lutheran  singing,  declared  it  to  be  an  exact  imitation, 
without  exaggeration.  But  before  the  exercise  was  half 
through,  the  audience  showed  signs  of  impatience,  and 
by  the  time  the  end  was  reached,  all  declared  it  was  the 
most  intolerably  wearisome  thing  they  had  ever  experi- 
enced in  music." 

As  an  enrichment  to  his  own  personal  culture,  the 
minister  ought  to  know  these  German  masterpieces  ;  but 
if  he  does  rise  to  the  height  of  their  excellence  and  is 
able  to  appreciate  their  stupendous  strength,  he  ought  to 
let  good  practical  sense  hold  the  rein  of  his  enthusiasm 
and  prevent  his  spoiling  his  service  by  their  attempted 
use. 

It  is  a  significant  fact  that  the  German  hymn  tunes 
that  have  been  really  adopted  into  our  American  psalmody 
are  none  of  them  chorals,  but  easy  folk-songs,  spiritual 
and  secular,  which  are  melodious  and  unpretentious  in 
harmony.  "  Lischer,"  "  Messiah,"  "  Rosefield,"  "  Az- 
mon,"  "  St.  Hilda,"  "  Hendon,"  "  Dennis,"  "  Goshen," 
"  Halle,"  "  Seymour,"  "  Nuremburg,"  "  Hursley,"  "  Wil- 
mot,"  "  Arator,"  "  Rhine,"  are  all  cases  in  point.  These 
simpler  German  tunes  have  had  a  great  influence  upon 
American  psalmody,  as  Lowell  Mason,  Hastings,  and 
others  made  them  their  models  rather  than  the  English 
and  Scotch  tunes  that  had  previously  been  largely  in  use. 

Our  American  church  life  is  so  largely  a  development 
of  impulses  and  vital  forces  that  originally  came  from 
England,  that  the  English  hymn  tunes  and  other  church 
music  are  more  likely  to  be  practicable  in  America  than 
the  German.  Many  of  the  hymn  tunes  that  have  become 
an  integral  part  of  American  Protestant  church  music 
are  English  and  Scotch  in  origin.     The  very  fathers  of 


116  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

American  psalmody  introduced  many  of  these  tunes  and 
made  them  a  part  of  the  American  church  consciousness. 
Duke  Street,  St.  Thomas,  Hanover,  Rockingham,  War- 
wick, Silver  Street,  Evan,  Melody, — the  list  of  these 
older  English  tunes,  whose  loss  would  greatly  impoverish 
our  congregational  singing,  is  too  long  to  quote  here.  I 
am  not  prepared  to  say  that  these  English  tunes  are  all 
from  Nonconformist  sources ;  but  it  is  their  Noncon- 
formist spirit  and  popular  practicability  that  gave  them 
such  vogue  in  America. 

The  later  school  of  English  hymn  tune  writers  is  dis- 
tinctly High  Church.  The  calendar  of  saints  is  nearly 
exhausted  in  the  naming  of  their  tunes.  Their  compo- 
sitions are  written  with  a  cathedral  or  large  parish  choir 
in  mind.  Dr.  Gauntlett  confessed,  when  it  was  urged 
that  the  hymnal  ("  The  Psalmist"),  to  which  he  had  contrib- 
uted largely,  was  impracticable,  that  he  had  studied  the 
capabilities  of  choirs  rather  than  of  congregations.  Dr. 
Curwen  remarks  on  this  point  that  "  Nowadays,  com- 
posers of  hymn  tunes  write  for  the  organ  and  seldom  stop 
to  consider  whether  what  they  write  can  be  sung."  They 
are  largely  organ  rather  than  vocal  compositions.  Often 
the  melody  is  without  real  melodic  character  and  the 
other  parts  are  angular  and  unsingable,  so  completely  do 
the  composers  depend  upon  the  progress  of  the  harmony 
for  success. 

The  precentor  of  a  large  Scotch  church  in  writing  Dr. 
Curwen  regarding  his  work,  refers  to  these  modern  tunes 
as  follows  :  "  The  style  of  tune  now  generally  advocated 
is  another  hindrance.  Most  of  them  are  so  bald,  so  void 
of  melody,  so  wooden,  that  it  is  little  wonder  that  people 
don't  take  to  them  readily." 

Rev.  C,  W.  Bispham,  an  Episcopal  clergyman,  in  a 


GEKMAN  CHOKALS  .117 

very  sensible  and  helpful  lecture  before  the  General  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  thus  characterizes  these  tunes :  "  The 
drawback  to  the  modern  hymn  tune  writer  is  the  fact  that 
he  uses  every  effort  to  make  his  tune  as  learned  a  piece 
of  writing  as  possible.  He  gives  you  the  most  extraor- 
dinary harmonies  and  lands  you  high  and  dry  in  the 
most  unexpected  places  !  In  other  words,  the  majority 
of  modern  hymn  tunes  are  laboured,  and  fitted  not  at  all 
for  the  people  to  sing !  "  They  double  thirds  and  in- 
dulge in  hidden  fifths  and  octaves  in  a  way  that  would 
horrify  German  theorists. 

While  Dr.  David  R.  Breed,  in  his  "  History  and  Use  of 
Hymns  and  Hymn  Tunes,"  characterizes  this  class  of  tunes 
as  "  a  form  of  hymn  tune  music  in  which  all  that  is  best 
in  sacred  song  is  reverently  cherished  and  employed ;  in 
which  the  blemishes  of  the  experimental  stage  are  re- 
moved ;  in  which  all  needful  variety  is  introduced ;  and  in 
which  the  very  best  in  art  is  made  to  serve  the  highest  in 
religion,"  Dr.  J.  S.  Curwen  takes  a  more  critical  attitude 
and  analyzes  the  impression  they  make  upon  him  as  fol- 
lows :  "  While  acknowledging  their  exceeding  beauty, 
one  feels  that  it  is  a  beauty  that  does  not  last.  In  pro- 
portion to  the  ravishing  effects  of  these  progressions,  the 
ear  does  not  care  to  have  them  repeated.  WTe  always 
feel  this  by  the  time  we  get  to  the  fourth  or  fifth  verse. 
The  weight  of  dissonance,  which  at  first  delights  the  ear, 
soon  palls  upon  it.  Our  palates  are  surfeited  ;  it  is  the 
strawberry  jam  of  music." 

In  writing  of  Dyke's  music,  Dr.  Breed  spends  un- 
stinted praise.  "  We  may  take  anything  which  he  has 
contributed  to  modern  collections  and  set  it  up  as  a 
standard,  saying,  ■  This  is  what  a  tune  ought  to  be  for 
such  a  hymn   as  this  ! ' "     Sir  Henry  Smart   does   not 


118  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

seem  to  share  Dr.  Breed's  uncritical  enthusiasm,  but  re- 
marks, "  I  am  not  very  fond  of  Dr.  Dyke's  tunes.  To 
my  mind  they  have  generally  an  effeminacy  of  character 
which  is  not  appropriate."  He  puts  his  finger  with  un- 
erring touch  upon  the  weak  point  in  Dyke's  music :  it  is 
all  nervously  depressing.  "  Nicaea "  is  majestic,  but 
quietly,  unaggressively  so ;  it  has  nothing  of  the  virility 
and  exhilaration  of  "  Duke  Street,"  not  to  speak  of  Sul- 
livan's "  St.  Gertrude." 

But  when  these  modern  English  tunes  do  rise  out  of 
the  banality  of  harmonic  exercises  they  seem  to  me  very 
admirable.  I  hardly  need  to  refer  to  the  majesty  of 
"  Nicaea  "  by  John  R.  Dykes,  to  the  tender  dignity  of 
"  Eventide  "  by  William  H.  Monk,  or  to  the  profound 
feeling  of  "  St.  Margaret  "  by  Albert  L.  Peace.  "  Lead, 
Kindly  Light "  by  Dykes  is  more  popular,  but  it  is  not  as 
good  as  a  congregational  tune,  because  of  the  greatly 
varying  length  of  its  notes  which  are  observed  by  few 
audiences.  "Vox  Delicti,"  by  the  same  composer,  is 
really  a  responsive  piece  for  choir  and  congregation. 
Very  few  congregations  are  able  to  sing  the  first  half  of 
it  with  any  degree  of  correctness  or  effectiveness.  Prop- 
erly rendered  it  is  a  gem  of  rare  beauty.  The  same 
practically  may  be  said  of  the  same  composer's  "  Vox 
Angelica."  The  two  measures  in  which  the  modu- 
lation into  the  key  of  A  flat  occurs  is  a  stumbling- 
block  in  an  otherwise  beautiful  and  effective  tune. 
The  settings  of  this  favourite  hymn  by  Henry  Smart 
and  Joseph  Barnby  are  more  commonplace  and  me- 
chanical. 

"  St.  Gertrude,"  Arthur  D.  Sullivan's  martial  setting  of 
Baring-Gould's  processional,  "  Onward,  Christian  Sol- 
diers," combines  strength,  distinction,  and  practicability 


GEKMAN  CHOKALS  119 

in  an  uncommon  degree.  That  Sullivan  should  have 
later  taken  what  he  had  originally  written  as  a  Sunday- 
school  tune  for  children  as  the  basis  of  an  extended 
choral  composition,  shows  that  he  himself  had  not 
realized  the  noble  possibilities  of  its  theme.  Joseph 
Barnby's  "  Merrial  "  to  Baring- Gould's  "  Now  the  day  is 
over  "  has  a  perennial  charm  acknowledged  by  all ;  but 
our  average  congregations  can  do  little  with  it,  as  its 
melody  lies  largely  in  the  lower  parts.  "  Ellers,"  by 
Edward  J.  Hopkins,  is  a  tuneful  setting  to  Ellerton's 
"  Saviour  again  to  Thy  dear  name  we  raise  "  that  is 
deservedly  popular.  American  Christians  have  been 
singing  George  J.  Elvey's  "  Diademata  "  pretty  generally 
in  recent  years,  and  it  is  worthy  of  even  wider  use. 
There  are  a  score  or  so  more  of  these  modern  English 
tunes,  like  St.  Agnes,  Stephanos,  Laudes  Domini,  The 
Good  Fight,  Almsgiving,  Pax  Tecum,  Jude,  Homeland, 
Paradise,  Regent  Square,  St.  George,  that  are  fairly 
tuneful  and  practicable  and  deserve  a  place  in  every 
hymnal. 

Why  Sullivan's  shallow  "  Hanford  "  finds  a  place  in  so 
many  hymnals  I  can  only  explain  by  the  high  standing 
of  the  composer.  His  "  St.  Edmund  "  is  a  pleasing  and 
practicable  tune  that  is  displacing  Mason's  "  Bethany  " 
in  some  parts  of  the  country ;  but  so  much  of  it  is  a 
reminiscence  of  a  melody  widely  sung  half  a  century  ago 
that  I  confess  to  a  prejudice  against  it. 

The  mass  of  the  unmentioned  English  hymn  tunes  are 
dull  and  insipid,  studied  and  forced  in  harmony,  angular 
and  untuneful.  They  represent  a  good  deal  of  mechanical 
technique,  and  that,  I  presume,  has  impressed  American 
hymnal  editors  who  overload  their  books  with  them. 
Musical  trash  is  trash  whether  it  is  written  in  half  notes 


120  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

or  eighths,  whether  it  is  ponderous  with  obscure  harmonies 
or  confined  to  the  simple  tonic,  dominant  and  subdomi- 
nant  triads.  Mechanical  facility  must  not  be  confused 
with  artistic  felicity. 


THE  TESTS  OF  A  GOOD  HYMN  TUNE 

IN  groping  after  reasons  for  the  faith  that  is  in  you 
regarding  hymn  tunes,  let  me  warn  you  against  the 
arbitrary  formulae  found  in  many  articles  and  books 
written  by  theorists.  They  look  so  wise,  are  so  easily 
understood,  and  call  for  so  little  discretion  in  their  applica- 
tion, that  it  is  quite  a  temptation  to  a  busy  man  whose 
mental  interest  lies  elsewhere  to  accept  them  without  ques- 
tion. Dr.  Breed  proposes  one  that  looks  plausible :  "  The 
fundamental  form  of  the  best  tune  embraces  the  follow- 
ing features  :  common  time,  one  syllable  to  each  note, 
simple  melody  and  radical  chords."  Let  the  censor 
apply  that  rule  to  our  hymnals  and  when  he  is  done 
blacking  out  those  failing  to  meet  these  tests,  what  would 
you  have  left  ?  Why  not  enunciate  a  rule  regarding 
hymns  by  a  similar  process  of  reasoning,  that  the  funda- 
mental form  of  a  hymn  is  iambic  measure,  common  meter 
and  four  lines  to  the  stanza  ? 

The  suggestion  that  triple  time  should  not  be  used  in 
church  music  is  often  made.  One  German-American 
writer  even  deprecates  organ  music  in  this  time  as  having 
sensuous  suggestions.  There  is  quite  as  much  propriety  in 
the  idea  of  the  old  monks  of  the  eleventh  century  that  triple 
time  is  "  perfect  time  "  because  it  recognizes  the  doctrine 
of  the  Trinity  !  Yet  another  critic  objects  to  it  because 
it  is  too  slow  !  William  Mason,  a  writer  on  congrega- 
tional singing  in  the  early  nineteenth  century,  inveighs 

121 


122  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

against  the  drawling  singing  then  in  vogue  in  the 
churches,  and  asks  "  that  the  first  note  be  as  short  again 
as  the  second,  the  third  as  the  fourth,  and  so  on  to  the 
end  of  each  line  " — i.  e.>  compound  triple  time,  six-quar- 
ters or  six-eighths — "  prolonging  the  time  of  the  whole 
strain  to  about  twice  that  of  solemn  recitation.  This, 
while  it  added  to  intelligibility,  would  take  from  psalmody- 
its  tedious  drawl  and  certainly  leave  it  sufficient  gravity." 

Another  American  writer,  afflicted  with  the  "  gush  of 
amateurism,"  objects  to  "  quick  repeated  successions  of 
accented  and  unaccented  notes,  and  dotted  notes  with 
rhythmical  pulsations."  These,  he  says,  are  "  opposed  to 
the  very  nature  of  a  religious  subject.  Nothing  sacred 
should  be  written  in  three-four,  three-eight  or  six-eight 
time." 

What  a  rabbinical  tithing  of  anise  and  cummin,  what  a 
forgetting  of  the  weightier  matters  of  the  law  all  this  rep- 
resents. This  narrow,  scholastic,  mechanical  attitude, 
moreover,  is  taken  with  infinite  self-complacency  as  ex- 
clusive and  superior.  Let  us  freshen  the  atmosphere  by 
quoting  from  Luther  a  passage  regarding  hymn  tunes 
whose  broad  catholicity  is  as  admirable  as  it  is  sensible  : 
"  I  cannot  praise  those  who  banish  all  the  Latin  hymns 
from  the  church.  On  the  other  hand  it  is  not  less  wrong 
to  sing  only  Latin  hymns  for  the  congregation."  A  later 
German,  Thibaut,  whose  little  book  on  "  Purity  in 
Music "  is  a  classic,  makes  this  plea  for  breadth  of 
sympathy,  "  We  deny  ourselves  the  highest  enjoyment  in 
music  if  we  aim  at  annihilating  every  composer  and  every 
style  but  one." 

A  good  deal  of  stress  has  been  laid  on  the  origin  of 
music  to  be  used  in  the  church  and  the  exclusion  of 
everything  having  a  secular  beginning  is  insisted  upon. 


THE  TESTS  OF  A  GOOD  HYMN  TUNE      123 

It  is  true  that  the  human  mind  is  exceedingly  quick  to 
give  music  a  definite  meaning  by  associating  with  it  in 
the  memory  ideas  of  things  associated  with  it  in  its  use. 
This  tendency  to  association  of  ideas  is  very  strong  and 
despite  the  inherent  non-religiousness  of  all  music  must  be 
reckoned  with.  It  is  not  the  origin  of  the  music  that 
counts,  if  it  is  adapted  to  use  in  church  work ;  it  is  the 
present  immediate  suggestion  it  brings  that  is  to  be  con- 
sidered. Hence  Richard  Storrs  Willis  was  both  right 
and  wrong  in  rebuking  Mason,  Emerson,  Webb  and  other 
contemporary  hymn  tune  book  makers  for  their  habit  of 
taking  music  from  the  most  nondescript  foreign  sources  : 
"  Our  psalm  and  hymn  tunes  are  constructed  in  the  form 
of  German  popular  part  songs.  The  old  English  glee 
has  also  served  as  a  model.  German  convivial  songs, 
soldier's  songs,  student's  songs,  are  actually  found  bodily 
transferred  to  our  books  of  church  psalmody  and  are 
sung  in  our  churches  as  sacred  music."  Had  these  Ger- 
man associations  been  known  to  the  American  churches, 
the  objection  would  have  been  a  valid  one.  Actually, 
the  music  had  no  associations  whatever  to  the  churches 
in  this  country  and,  in  so  far  as  they  were  practically 
adapted  to  religious  uses,  religious  associations  would  im- 
mediately cluster  about  them.  It  is  interesting  to  note 
that  while  only  one  of  Willis'  tunes,  "  Carol,"  a  Christ- 
mas melody,  survives,  a  number  of  these  German  secular 
tunes  still  find  a  place  in  our  best  hymnals.  In  this 
country  the  religious  association  has  been  firmly  estab- 
lished and  hence  their  usefulness  is  not  disturbed  by  their 
origin. 

In  my  early  boyhood,  I  occasionally  heard  a  spiritual, 
"  Saw  Ye  My  Saviour,"  which  I  greatly  enjoyed.  While 
the  hymn  is  partly  in  the  repetitious  style  common  to  the 


124  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

early  spirituals  and  has  little  value,  the  tune  still  seems  to 
me  melodious  and  worthy  of  use.  Originally  it  was  a 
popular  colonial  song,  "  Saw  Ye  Not  My  Father  ?  "  Dur- 
ing the  Revolution  it  was  parodied  and  became  Lady 
Washington's  lament  over  the  absence  of  her  popular 
husband,  "  Saw  Ye  Not  My  Hero  ?  "  Later  still  it  was 
made  the  basis  of  the  "  spiritual."  Probably  the  associa- 
tion of  ideas  made  the  song  offensive  to  people  of  taste 
when  it  first  appeared  ;  but  once  the  secular  song  passed 
from  the  people's  memory,  as  it  naturally  did  soon  after 
the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  war,  the  incongruity  dis- 
appeared with  it.  It  became  one  of  the  most  thoughtful 
and  impressive  of  the  "  spirituals  " ;  indeed  in  many  com- 
munities its  use  would  still  be  effective.  It  certainly  is 
far  superior  to  "  The  Old  Time  Religion,"  another  "  spir- 
itual "  which  has  again  come  into  vogue  and  has  been  car- 
ried round  the  world  by  Dr.  Torrey  and  Mr.  Alexander. 

Furthermore,  rude,  unlettered  people  have  less  inclina- 
tion to  a  definite  association  of  ideas  and  also  less  sensi- 
tiveness to  incongruities  of  impression.  This  explains 
why  the  Salvation  Army  can  take  "  The  Devil's  tunes  " 
without  harm,  while  the  editor  of  a  high  class  hymnal 
must  watch  with  exceeding  care  the  associations  con- 
nected with  the  tunes  he  uses. 

The  sensible,  practical  minister  will  brush  aside  all 
these  artificial  restrictions  born  of  subjective  theorizing, 
using  "  Dennis  "  and  "  Stockwell  "  and  "  Hursley,"  de- 
spite their  triple  time  and  "  Rhine  "  and  "  St.  Jude"  and 
"  Seymour,"  despite  their  convivial  and  operatic  origin. 
He  will  consider  intrinsic  musical  value  and  practical 
availability  in  his  own  work,  utterly  indifferent  to  the 
theorists  in  their  studies  who  amuse  themselves  with 
microscopic  and  impracticable  niceties. 


THE  TESTS  OF  A  GOOD  HYMN  TUKE       125 

What  are  the  criteria  by  which  we  may  judge  whether 
a  tune  is  a  good  one  or  not  ? 

In  the  first  place,  a  tune  must  be  tuneful.  That  seems 
so  self-evident  that  a  statement  of  it  strikes  one  as  super- 
fluous. But  when  one  looks  over  some  of  the  later  Eng- 
lish tunes  and  sees  how  this  essential  characteristic  of  a 
hymn  tune  is  ignored,  there  is  evidently  a  call  for  empha- 
sizing it.  Here  is  the  melody  of  "  Bevan  "  by  Sir  John 
Goss. 


Apart  from  the  harmonies,  which  are  technically  very 
well  done,  and  interesting,  the  most  of  the  tune  looks  like 
a  vocal  exercise  in  scales,  and  the  rest  is  so  commonplace 
and  so  threadbare  with  constant  use  that  even  American 
Sunday-school  music  writers  no  longer  have  the  courage 
to  reproduce  it !  There  is  nothing  pleasing,  nor  charac- 
teristic, nor  expressive  of  any  feeling  in  the  melody,  al- 
though I  confess  the  varied  harmonies  give  a  factitious 
interest.  That  may  redeem  it  as  a  musical  composition, 
but  not  as  a  hymn  tune.  The  very  first  test  of  a  tune  is 
the  charm,  the  marked  character  and  the  expressiveness 
that  enable  it  to  stand  alone.  If  that  fails  nothing  else 
can  save  it. 

A  tune  must  be  vocal  in  character.     Not  every  strong 


126  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

or  pleasing  melody  is  fitted  for  the  human  voice.  A 
good  many  arrangements  of  instrumental  melodies  are  to 
be  found  in  our  larger  hymnals.  Some  of  them  are  fairly 
successful,  notably  "  Gottschalk  "  from  that  famous  vir- 
tuoso's piano  solo,  "  The  Last  Hope."  Not  quite  so  suc- 
cessful are  the  arrangements  of  Mendelssohn's  "  Song 
Without  Words,"  Book  2,  No.  3,  known  as  "  Peace  "  and 
"  Aspiration."  The  melody  is  very  beautiful  and  express- 
ive, and  will  carry  a  religious  sentiment  very  felicitously  ; 
but  as  far  as  it  bears  use  for  the  voice  it  is  a  solo  rather 
than  a  hymn  tune,  both  because  of  its  severe  intervals 
and  its  affettuoso  style.  I  am  inclined  to  deprecate  the 
arrangement  of  the  vocal  movement  from  Beethoven's 
Ninth  Symphony,  known  as  "  Ludwig."  In  its  place, 
with  the  background  of  the  tumultuous  orchestra,  this 
simple  melody  is  supremely  effective,  but  as  a  hymn  tune 
it  is  rather  insipid. 

The  chief  difficulties  with  such  arrangements  are  first, 
that  they  are  wrenched  from  their  proper  setting,  and, 
second,  that  in  the  arrangement  such  changes  become 
necessary,  or  are  arbitrarily  made,  as  to  rob  the  original 
of  its  chief  beauty.  It  almost  seems  unjust  to  burden 
the  reputation  of  a  great  composer  with  the  credit  for 
arrangements  which  he  would  hardly  recognize  and 
which  in  some  cases  he  certainly  would  not  care  to  own. 
"  Antioch "  is  credited  to  Handel  as  having  been  ar- 
ranged from  "  The  Messiah."  The  fact  is,  Lowell  Mason 
took  a  phrase  of  three  or  four  notes  from  one  of  the 
choruses  as  the  opening  of  the  tune  and  wrote  all  the  rest 
himself.     It  is  Mason's  not  Handel's  tune. 

Then  a  tune  must  be  practicable.  Not  only  must  it 
not  have  any  single  high  notes  above  or  below  the  range 
of    the     average    worshipper,    it     must    not    call    for 


THE  TESTS  OF  A  GOOD  HYMN  TUNE      127 

sustained  use  of  the  higher  part  of  that  range.  A  tune 
that  remains  above  B  for  several  successive  phrases  will 
inevitably  induce  flatting.  Then  extreme  intervals  such 
as  octaves,  sevenths,  augmented  fourths  and  seconds,  and 
even  sixths  in  certain  relations,  are  difficult  for  a  general 
congregation.  The  angularity  of  the  opening  phrase  of 
"  Pietas," 


gi 


o 


"*- ^> 


is  as  evident  to  the  eye  as  it  is  difficult  to  sing  with  ef- 
fectiveness. The  same  objection  holds  against  the  open- 
ing strain  of  Handel's  "  I  Know  That  My  Redeemer 
Liveth  "  when  arranged  as  a  hymn  tune.  As  a  solo,  of 
course,  the  criticism  does  not  apply. 

Furthermore,  a  tune  must  make  progress  as  it  proceeds. 
Its  parts  must  be  so  articulated  that  singers  can  feel  that 
progress  from  line  to  line.  "  St.  Veronica  "  is  a  clear  case 
of  a  violation  of  this  rule : 


¥=t 


m 


i 


etc 


4 


Here  the  first  three  phrases  all  end  on  G  and  the  chord 
of  E.  Even  the  fourth  practically  ends  the  same  way,  as 
it  also  closes  on  the  chord  of  E. 

If  a  tune  is  to  be  really  effective  it  must  bear  the  ac- 
cent, have  the  style   of  musical  thought   natural  and 


128  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

spontaneous  to  those  who  are  to  sing  it.  A  tune  that 
drops  its  h's,  i.  e.f  that  is  ultra-English,  will  never  be 
widely  useful  in  America.  However  spontaneous  it  may- 
be with  an  English  congregation,  it  seems  forced,  un- 
natural, meaningless  to  an  average  American  assembly. 
"  St.  Francis "  by  Sullivan  seems  to  me  such  a  tune. 
Most  of  the  German  chorals  are  shut  out  by  the  same 
consideration.  They  are  national,  not  universal,  in 
spirit. 

It  is  not  always  possible  to  account  for  the  vogue  and 
popularity  of  a  tune.  But  whether  you  can,  or  cannot, 
its  acceptability  among  a  variety  of  congregations  over  a 
fairly  long  period  of  time  is  an  infallible  criterion  of  a 
good  tune.  All  the  quasi-technical  criticisms  of  "  Coro- 
nation "  fall  away  in  the  face  of  its  persistent  hold  upon 
the  American  people.  Modern  hymnal  editors  have 
been  trying  in  vain  to  displace  it  with  the  British  "  Miles 
Lane."  Why  they  should  wish  to  force  upon  the  Ameri- 
can churches  the  British  tune,  with  its  growl  at  the  end 
of  the  second  line  and  its  howl  at  the  end  of  the  fourth,  I 
can  only  explain  by  the  Athenian  itch  for  something  new. 
Sir  Henry  Smart  actually  called  it  "  vulgar." 

The  best  tune  can  be  spoiled  by  mismating  it  with  an 
incongruous  hymn.  To  sing  Lyte's  "  Abide  with  Me  " 
to  Hopkin's  "  Ellers  "  (also  known  as  "  Benediction  ") 
seems  to  me  to  spoil  both.  To  sing  "  Asleep  in  Jesus, 
blessed  sleep  "  to  an  ever-changing  florid  tune  like  "  St. 
John's  Highlands,"  is  to  violate  the  quiet  spirit  of  the 
text.  The  self-imposed  task  of  providing  an  alternative 
tune  leads  to  a  good  many  such  mismatings  in  our  recent 
hymnals,  and  ministers  and  choir  directors  need  to  be  put 
on  their  guard. 

That  a  hymn  and  a  tune  are  marked  as  having  the  same 


THE  TESTS  OF  A  GOOD  HYMN  TUNE      129 

meter  is  no  assurance  that  they  will  fit  in  accent.  The 
first  measure  of  many  hymns  of  otherwise  iambic 
structure  is  a  trochee,  throwing  the  accent  on  the  first  in- 
stead of  the  second  syllable.  There  are  tunes  which 
take  account  of  this  opening  trochee  and  they  do  not  fit  a 
hymn  of  the  same  meter  of  regular  iambic  structure. 
Some  tunes  are  adapted  to  lines  having  a  regularly  oc- 
curring caesura ;  but  there  are  many  hymns  of  like  meter 
in  which  the  caesura  is  placed  irregularly.  Such  tunes 
and  hymns  will  not  mate. 

Happy  is  the  minister  whose  hymnal  fits  the  need  of 
his  people.  It  is  a  spiritual  force  of  incalculable  value, 
which  study  of  its  pages  will  enable  him  to  exploit  more 
and  more,  and  to  use  for  the  inspiration  and  edification  of 
his  people.  But  even  the  crudest,  most  ill-adapted  col- 
lection has  enough  good  matter  in  it,  if  properly  handled, 
to  accomplish  more  than  is  now  realized  in  the  average 
congregation. 


XI 

MUSIC  IN  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARIES 

THE  crying  fault  of  our  theological  schools  is 
their  emphasis  of  abstract  scholarship  and  their 
indifference  to  practical  results.  Their  ideal  is  a 
scholar,  not  a  preacher,  much  less  a  practical  pastor.  On 
the  practical  side  there  is  a  half  year's  course  in  practical 
theology,  at  most  a  year  in  theoretical  homiletics,  no 
elocution,  no  Sunday-school  work,  no  hymnology,  no 
church  music.  About  one-eighth  of  the  course  is  given 
to  the  practical  side  of  the  minister's  work  and  even  that 
is  largely  abstract  instead  of  concrete,  and  often  taught 
by  professors  who  have  had  little  or  no  actual  experience 
in  pastoral  work.  What  sort  of  physicians  would  a 
medical  school  run  on  like  lines  produce  ? 

Why  should  the  seminaries  teach  even  what  sermon 
building  they  do  and  give  no  time  to  church  music  when 
in  the  average  service  the  music  occupies  as  much  time 
as  the  sermon  ?  Rev.  Dr.  Steele  in  a  lecture  before  the 
General  Theological  Seminary  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  1894  said  that  he  was  "  Almost  tempted  to  say 
that  the  chair  of  music  is  vastly  superior  in  practical  im- 
portance to  any  chair  in  the  seminary."  Back  in  18 17 
Andover  Seminary  had  the  right  idea.  In  its  statutes 
occurred  the  following  :  "  As  it  is  proper  for  those  who 
are  to  preside  in  the  assemblies  of  God's  people  to  pos- 
sess themselves  of  so  much  skill  and  taste  in  this  sublime 
art  as  at  least  to  distinguish  between  those  solemn  move- 

130 


MUSIC  IN  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINAEIES    131 

merits  which  are  congenial  to  pious  minds,  and  those  un- 
hallowed trifling  medley  pieces  which  chill  devotion,  it  is 
expected  that  serious  attention  will  be  paid  to  the  culture 
of  a  true  taste  for  genuine  church  music  in  this  seminary ; 
and  that  all  students  therein  who  have  tolerable  voices 
will  be  duly  instructed  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  this 
celestial  art ;  and  whenever  it  shall  be  in  the  power  of 
either  of  the  said  professors,  it  shall  accordingly  be  his 
duty  to  afford  this  necessary  instruction,  and  whenever 
this  shall  not  be  the  case  it  is  expected  that  an  instructor 
will  be  procured  for  this  purpose." 

A  theological  student  at  Yale  can  secure  the  best  pos- 
sible instruction  in  Sanscrit,  Syriac,  Arabic,  philosophy, 
sociology,  physiological  psychology,  and  many  other 
branches  of  no  particular  practical  value,  but,  in  spite  of 
the  magnificent  Lowell  Mason  Music  Library,  which 
until  very  recently  lay  in  the  East  Divinity  Hall  unused 
and  unexploited,  and  practically  uncared  for,  he  can  get 
no  musical  instruction  that  will  have  any  practical  bear- 
ing on  his  management  of  a  church  and  its  services. 
Yes,  the  University  has  Horatio  W.  Parker,  a  strong 
composer  in  advanced  modern  style,  at  the  head  of  its 
music,  but  Mr.  Parker  is  an  idealist  who  must  have  the 
largest  possible  resources  at  his  command,  both  vocally 
and  instrumentally,  if  he  is  to  achieve  results,  and  would 
be  as  helpless  as  a  schoolgirl  in  three  out  of  five  churches 
that  are  to  be  supplied  by  the  students  in  the  divinity 
school.  He  contributes  to  the  pride  of  Yale  in  its  high 
standards  of  culture  and  art,  but  not  at  all  to  the  develop- 
ment of  practical  musical  skill  in  its  theological  students. 
I  speak  of  Yale,  because  it  is  one  of  the  best  of  our 
American  seminaries  and  affords  unusual  opportunities. 

The  same  is  true  of  Union  Theological  Seminary  of 


132  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

New  York.  It  has  a  large  hymnological  and  musical 
library,  rich  in  materials  for  the  study  of  this  important 
phase  of  church  work,  but  there  is  no  effort  made  to  in- 
terest the  students  in  its  treasures.  There  is  an  en- 
dowment fund  of  $20,000,  the  income  of  which  goes  to 
sustain  a  professorship  filled  by  Dr.  Gerrit  Smith,  the 
president  of  the  American  Guild  of  Organists.  He  gives 
a  few  lectures  at  the  opening  of  the  year  on  the  history 
of  music  and  teaches  the  rudiments  of  music  to  a  small 
class  of  students  who  voluntarily  attend. 

In  a  few  American  seminaries  there  has  been  some  ef- 
fort made  to  create  interest  in  church  music,  notably  in 
the  Congregational  seminaries  at  Hartford  and  Oberlin, 
and  in  the  Western  Theological  Seminary  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  at  Allegheny,  Pennsylvania.  Unfortunately 
the  naturally  academic  interest  in  abstract  standards  in 
these  pioneer  efforts  greatly  lessens  their  practical  value. 
There  is  so  great  an  emphasis  on  ideals  and  so  slight  an 
attention  to  practical  methods  that  the  young  minister 
goes  out  almost  more  helpless  than  he  would  have  been 
without  the  musical  instruction  he  received  in  the 
seminary. 

In  England  a  canvass  of  the  theological  schools  by 
Dr.  Curwen  some  years  ago  revealed  that  of  eighty  in- 
stitutions only  thirteen  formally  recognize  music  or  sing- 
ing as  part  of  the  curriculum.  Even  in  these  little  more 
than  vocal  classes  was  attempted. 

Really  the  most  practical  and  helpful  courses  in  church 
music  in  this  country,  if  not  in  the  world,  are  given  at 
the  Moody  Bible  Institute  under  the  direction  of 
Dr.  D.  B.  Towner.  While  the  training  given  here  is 
primarily  intended  for  singing  evangelists,  it  is  equally 
valuable  for  regular  pastors. 


MUSIC  IN  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINABIES    133 

It  may  be  asked  what  should  theological  seminaries  do 
for  their  unfledged  pastors  ?  The  following  points  give  a 
bare  outline  of  what  every  seminary  ought  to  do  with  the 
same  care  and  conscientiousness  that  it  devotes  to  ser- 
mon-making. 

i.  Every  student  should  be  given  opportunity  for  the 
study  of  musical  notation,  and  the  ability  to  read — not 
necessarily  to  sing — notes  should  be  required  for  gradua- 
tion. 

2.  There  should  be  a  fairly  complete  course  in  the 
history  of  sacred  music  in  all  its  forms,  either  as  a  part  of 
church  history  or  as  an  independent  course. 

3.  There  should  be  a  study  of  hymn  tunes  in  their 
relation  to  hymns,  so  that  every  graduate  shall  have  at 
least  a  hundred  tunes  at  his  command  for  practical  use. 
He  need  not  be  able  to  sing  them,  if  he  has  not  a  musical 
ear,  but  in  any  case  he  should  know  how  and  where  to 
use  them.  This  course  should  be  practical  laboratory 
work,  with  only  enough  theoretical  criticism  to  give  a 
basis  for  discrimination. 

4.  The  student  should  be  given  an  intelligent,  practi- 
cal knowledge  of  successful  methods  in  congregational 
singing. 

5.  He  ought  to  be  taught  how  to  organize  and  manage 
choirs  of  every  kind.  The  literature  of  choir  music 
should  be  known  in  its  typical  styles  and  grades,  as  well 
as  the  most  successful  compositions  for  solo  use. 

6.  He  should  be  given  sufficient  knowledge  of  the 
value  and  adaptability  of  various  solo  and  orchestral 
instruments  to  give  intelligent  oversight  to  their  use  and 
organization  in  church  work. 

7.  No  minister  ought  to  expect  an  important  pulpit 
without  a  general  knowledge  of  organs,  both  reed  and 


134  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

pipe.  He  need  not  be  a  player,  but  their  general 
mechanism  and  the  character  and  practical  value  of  their 
stops  should  be  known  to  him.  The  various  styles  of 
compositions  for  the  organ  should  also  be  clear  to  him,  in 
order  that  he  may  give  intelligent  suggestions  in  the 
development  of  his  service. 

8.  There  should  be  an  emphasis  of  general  musical 
culture  that  would  create  an  unwritten  law  that  every 
student  must  develop  his  taste  and  power  of  intelligent 
appreciation  by  attendance  upon  the  best  concerts  when- 
ever possible. 

9.  There  should  be  a  minute  historical,  literary,  emo- 
tional, and  practical  study  of  the  best  three  hundred 
hymns  and  Gospel  songs,  in  order  that  the  minister  may 
use  them  intelligently  and  effectively,  and  may  be  able  to 
revitalize  them  to  the  congregations  who  have  learned  to 
sing  them  perfunctorily  and  without  a  sense  of  their 
meaning. 

10.  Above  all,  every  graduate  of  a  seminary  should 
have  been  taught  to  properly  appreciate  the  value  of 
every  part  of  the  public  service  and  to  coordinate  them 
all  in  one  unified  impression,  and  to  make  them  all 
cooperate  towards  the  practical  results  we  have  a  right  to 
expect  from  public  church  services. 

This  looks  like  a  stiff  program  ;  it  is  one  that  has  never 
been  attempted  anywhere :  but  it  does  not  contain  an 
item  that  cannot  be  acquired  by  any  man  with  sufficient 
mind  to  be  a  minister,  nor  one  that  can  be  omitted  with- 
out serious  practical  detriment  to  a  pastor's  usefulness. 
I  realize  the  difficulties  that  would  meet  any  seminary 
which  would  attempt  it :  there  are  few  men  competent  to 
fill  such  a  church  music  chair ;  the  text-books  and  litera- 
ture necessary  for  such  a  course  are  yet  to  be  written  ; 


MUSIC  IN  THEOLOGICAL  SEMItfAKIES    135 

the  sense  of  need  for  such  a  course  on  the  part  of  the 
students  is  yet  to  be  developed. 

But  so  important  is  this  course  of  study  to  the  future 
success  of  the  aspirant  to  clerical  responsibilities  that  I 
feel  all  these  obstacles  should  be  removed  at  any  cost. 
Let  the  seminaries  assume  that  all  their  students  have  had 
the  rudiments  of  music.  If  not,  an  instructor  should  be 
provided  to  help  delinquent  students  work  off  their  con- 
ditions. By  the  use  of  a  hymnological  handbook  con- 
taining not  only  historical  matter,  but  practical  instruc- 
tion in  the  character,  adaptation,  and  practical  use  of 
hymns,  this  subject  can  be  traversed  in  an  entirely  prac- 
tical way  with  one  hour  per  week  in  the  junior  year. 
With  a  like  practical  handbook  on  church  music,  that 
subject  could  be  covered  during  the  middle  year.  An- 
other handbook  on  choir  management,  evangelistic  sing- 
ing, song  sermons,  and  other  special  uses  of  music  would 
occupy  the  senior  year.  In  this  way  all  that  I  have 
asked  for  above  could  be  given  without  seriously  taxing 
either  student  or  faculty. 


Part  II 
The  Minister's  Hymnological  Preparation 


THE  VALUE  OF  HYMNS 

IT  has  been  said  that  the  two  great  books  which  every 
minister  should  study  are  the  Bible  and  human  na- 
ture. May  I  add  a  third  great  book  in  which  the 
former  two  unite  in  a  new  combination — the  Hymn-Book. 
The  truths  of  the  Bible  there  find  their  expression  in  a 
new  form.  They  are  no  longer  oriental  in  type,  based 
upon  human  experiences  under  different  conditions  and 
in  a  different  intellectual  atmosphere,  but  modern,  and 
strong  with  a  fresh  vitality. 

The  hymn-book  is  an  evidence  of  what  the  Bible  can 
do  with  unregenerate  human  nature.  It  shows  how  the 
spirit  can  be  lifted  up  from  its  worldly-mindedness  and 
its  selfishness,  until  it  can  look  into  the  very  face  of  its 
Master,  and  enter  into  the  highest  spiritual  experiences. 
If  there  were  nothing  else  to  give  encouragement  and 
hopefulness  to  the  anxious  worker  in  the  vineyard  of  our 
Lord,  the  hymn-book  alone  ought  to  make  him  optimistic 
and  full  of  hope  for  the  future.  That  the  truth  of  the 
Bible  should  be  able  to  take  Newton,  the  slave-driver, 
and  make  him  a  minister  of  God,  not  only  himself  writ- 
ing such  hymns  as 


and 


"  Amazing  grace,  how  sweet  the  sound," 


How  sweet  the  name  of  Jesus  sounds," 
139 


140  PRACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

but  inspiring  and  encouraging  the  poor  hypochondriac, 
William  Cowper,  so  that  from  his  heart  should  well  forth 
the  hymns, 


and 


"  There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood," 


"  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform," 


is  in  itself  one  of  the  great  evidences  of  Christianity. 

The  extraordinary  results  of  the  use  of  hymns  and 
psalms  in  the  life  of  the  Church  and  of  believers  is  an- 
other reason  for  valuing  hymns  highly.  The  awkward 
lines  of  Sternhold  and  Hopkin's  version  of  the  psalms  en- 
tered into  the  speech  and  private  devotion  of  English 
Christians  as  even  the  Bible  itself  did  not,  becoming  a 
very  liturgy  to  the  condemners  and  flouters  of  liturgies. 
Thomas  Jackson,  in  his  life  of  Charles  Wesley,  remarks 
that  "  It  is  doubtful  whether  any  human  agency  has  con- 
tributed more  directly  to  form  the  character  of  the  Meth- 
odist societies  than  the  hymns.  The  sermons  of  the 
preachers,  the  prayers  of  the  people  both  in  their  families 
and  social  meetings,  are  all  tinged  with  the  sentiments 
and  phraseology  of  the  hymns." 

Listen  to  the  personal  experiences  of  Christians  in  our 
own  day  and  you  will  hear  more  reference  to  hymns  than 
to  the  Scriptures.  There  is  now  no  such  committing  to 
memory  of  passages  of  the  Bible  and  of  hymns  as  there 
was  in  preceding  generations,  but  almost  without  set  pur- 
pose, by  simple  absorption,  the  average  Christian  can 
quote  more  lines  of  hymns  than  he  can  Scripture  verses. 
This  extraordinary  place  in  the  affections  and  life  of 
Christian  people  is  no  derogation  to  the  Bible,  for  the 


THE  VALUE  OF  HYMNS  141 

hymns  are  simply  the  Bible  in  another  form.  It  certainly 
indicates  that  they  have  a  larger  spiritual  influence  than 
most  ministers  seem  to  allow  them. 

To  some  men  who  lack  emotional  and  poetic  insight, 
the  hymn-book  may  appear  dry  and  uninteresting.  It 
certainly  is  uninteresting  to  the  unspiritual  man,  no  mat- 
ter how  poetical  he  may  be,  and  this  will  account  for  the 
occasional  attack  upon  the  hymns  of  the  Christian  church 
as  being  without  poetical  power  or  merit.  Dr.  Samuel 
Johnson  said  of  Watts,  "  His  devotional  poetry  is  like 
that  of  others — unsatisfactory.  The  paucity  of  its  topics 
enforces  perpetual  repetition,  and  the  sanctity  of  the  mat- 
ter rejects  the  ornaments  of  figure."  That  these  hymns 
express  emotions  and  feelings  that  the  unregenerate  man 
cannot  understand  is  a  sufficient  reason  why  many  a 
literary  man  can  find  no  help  in  them,  or  why  he  can  see 
merit  in  only  a  few  of  them,  whose  literary  graces,  or 
whose  expression  of  an  emotion  common  to  all  humanity, 
whether  sanctified  or  unregenerate,  appeal  to  him.  But 
the  Christian  minister,  who  deals  with  spiritual  things,  for 
whom  the  emotions  of  the  human  heart  are  a  great  op- 
portunity for  sowing  the  seed  of  life,  ought  to  find  the 
study  of  his  hymn-book  a  great  delight. 

Here  he  comes  in  touch  with  the  saints  of  the  Church 
who  have  risen  to  the  greatest  heights  of  spiritual  insight, 
and  who  have  sung  because  the  feelings  within  them  were 
so  impelling  that  they  could  not  do  otherwise  than  sing. 
His  own  lacking  emotion,  his  own  dull  insight  of  spir- 
itual truth,  here  are  inspired  and  stimulated  until  he  too 
stands  upon  the  mountain  top.  For  his  own  spiritual 
edification,  therefore,  I  can  recommend  nothing,  outside 
of  the  Bible,  so  likely  to  be  of  spiritual  help  as  the  hymn- 
book.     When  he  is  discouraged,  its  hymns  of  inspiration 


142  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

and  encouragement  cannot  but  lift  the  cloud.  When  his 
heart  is  dull,  and  his  vision  of  his  Lord  obscured,  such 
hymns  as 

"Jesus,  I  love  Thy  charming  name," 

by  Philip  Doddridge ; 

"  My  God,  I  love  Thee,  not  because 
I  hope  for  heaven  thereby," 

by  Francis  Xavier ; 

"  Jesus,  these  eyes  have  never  seen 
That  radiant  form  of  Thine," 

by  our  own  Ray  Palmer ;  or 

"Jesus,  the  very  thought  of  Thee 
With  sweetness  fills  my  breast," 

by  that  saint  of  the  Middle  Ages,  Bernard  Clairvaux, 
surely  will  set  his  spiritual  pulses  in  motion  once  more 
and  thrill  him  with  the  vitalizing  vision  of  his  Lord.  Any 
minister  who  cannot  find  in  his  hymnal  encouragement, 
delight,  and  spiritual  uplift,  may  well  look  into  his  heart 
and  examine  his  spiritual  condition  with  anxiety  and 
concern. 


II 

WHAT  IS  A  HYMN? 

IN  taking  up  the  study  of  hymns  it  may  be  well  to 
clearly  define  the  nature  of  a  hymn  before  proceed- 
ing further.  The  narrow  etymological  definition  of 
a  hymn  would  confine  it  to  poems  that  in  at  least  some 
part  of  them  are  directly  addressed  to  some  person  of  the 
Deity.  There  are  hymnologists  that  insist  upon  this 
limited  conception.  Dr.  Austin  Phelps'  test  of  a  genuine 
hymn,  "  Genuineness  of  religious  emotion,  refinement  of 
poetic  taste  and  fitness  to  musical  cadence — these  are  es- 
sential to  a  faultless  hymn,  as  the  three  chief  graces  to  a 
faultless  character,"  is  a  very  clear  and  charming  state- 
ment of  the  essentials  of  a  hymn,  but  is  not  sufficiently 
explicit.  A  more  practical  and  more  useful  definition  is 
that  a  hymn  is  a  sacred  poem  expressive  of  devotion, 
spiritual  experience,  or  religious  truth,  fitted  to  be  sung 
by  an  assembly  of  people  in  a  public  service. 

The  first  element  in  this  definition  is  that  the  hymn 
must  be  poetry.  It  must  have  poetical  form,  having 
meter  and  rhyme.  This  is  absolutely  necessary  for  its 
use  with  a  musical  setting.  It  should  be  poetical  in 
spirit,  having  not  only  the  superficial  music  of  the  regu- 
larly recurring  accent,  but  the  liquid  harmony  of  the 
words  as  they  flow  through  the  lines,  and  the  literary 
grace  of  spiritual  thought  in  a  beautiful  expression.  If 
poetry  is  the  expression  of  thought  steeped  in  imagina- 

143 


144  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

tion  and  feeling,  all  the  more  must  the  hymn  be  the  ex- 
pression of  religious  thought  transfigured  with  emotion. 

But  every  sacred  poem  is  not  a  hymn.  Some  sacred 
poems  express  a  religious  emotion  in  so  individual  and 
unusual  a  way  that  they  are  not  at  all  fitted  to  express 
the  emotion  of  a  congregation.  As  an  illustration  of  a 
poem  too  personal  and  individualistic,  let  me  quote  a  few 
stanzas  of  one  found  in  several  of  the  hymnals : 

"My  feet  are  worn  and  weary  with  the  march 
On  the  rough  road  and  up  the  steep  hillside ; 
O  city  of  our  God,  I  fain  would  see 
Thy  pastures  green  where  peaceful  waters  glide. 


Patience,  poor  soul !     The  Saviour's  feet  were  worn, 
The  Saviour's  heart  and  hands  were  weary  too ; 

His  garments  stained  and  travel-worn,  and  old, 
His  vision  blinded  with  pitying  dew." 

This  beautiful  poem  would  make  an  admirable  text  for  a 
solo,  but  is  out  of  place  on  the  lips  of  a  congregation. 
Compare  with  this  the  very  useful  hymn, 

"  I  was  a  wandering  sheep, 
I  did  not  love  the  fold  ; 
I  did  not  love  my  Shepherd's  voice, 
I  would  not  be  controlled." 

Every  one  of  the  first  eight  lines  of  this  widely  used 
hymn  begins  with  the  pronoun  of  the  first  person  singu- 
lar :  yet  there  is  no  particular  individuality  in  this  confes- 
sion ;  it  is  the  common  experience  expressed  in  a  straight- 
forward manner  void  of  all  idiosyncrasy. 

In  some  hymns  there  is  found  an  intensity  of  feeling 
that  leads  to  an  apparent  extravagance  of  expression  that 
a  single  soul  can  sometimes  sincerely  accept  as  the  vehicle 


WHAT  IS  A  HYMN?  145 

of  its  own  experience,  but  which  a  gathering  of  miscel- 
laneous people  cannot  sing  without  the  great  mass  of 
them  being  insincere.  For  a  careless  person  to  idly  sing 
with  Faber 

"  I  love  Thee  so,  I  know  not  how 
My  transports  to  control," 

or 

"  Ah,  dearest  Jesus,  I  have  grown 
Childish  with  love  of  Thee," 

is  sheer  blasphemy.     It  is  the  sin  of  Uzzah  ! 

The  following  verses  from  one  of  Charles  Wesley's 
hymns  combine  the  two  faults  of  extravagance  and  too 
intense  individualism : 

"  On  the  wings  of  His  love  I  was  carried  above 
All  sin  and  temptation  and  pain ; 
I  could  not  believe  that  I  ever  should  grieve, 
That  I  ever  should  suffer  again. 

11 1  rode  in  the  sky  (freely  justified  I !  ) 
Nor  envied  Elijah  his  seat ; 
My  soul  mounted  higher  in  a  chariot  of  fire, 
And  the  moon  it  was  under  my  feet." 

Other  poems  are  so  full  of  imagination,  so  crowded 
with  unusual  and  almost  bizarre  figures  of  speech,  that 
they  fail  to  be  the  natural  expression  of  the  religious 
emotion  of  an  assembly  of  religious  people.  George 
Herbert  wrote  a  great  many  religious  poems  whose 
beauty  and  charm  are  only  enhanced  by  their  quaint  and 
unusual  imagery.  Occasionally  a  hymnal  editor  ventures 
on  a  selection,  but  it  is  so  foreign  to  the  methods  of 
thought  and  expression  of  the  churches  as  not  to  appeal 
to  their  taste  and  feeling.     Take  the  beautiful  poem  on 


146  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

the  Sabbath  day,  "  O  day  most  calm,  most  bright." 
The  first  line  is  spontaneous,  expressive  and  musical,  and 
appropriate  for  a  hymn.  The  second  line,  **  The  fruit  of 
this,  the  next  world's  bud,"  with  its  antithetical  structure, 
is  already  somewhat  formal  and  forced.  But  when  the 
third  and  fourth  lines, 

"  The  indorsement  of  supreme  delight, 
Writ  by  a  Friend  and  with  His  blood," 

offer  a  purely  legal  and  unpoetical  figure,  one's  sense  of 
song  is  entirely  obscured.     In  the  second  stanza, 

"  The  other  days  and  thou 

Make  up  one  man  whose  face  thou  art, 
Knocking  at  heaven  with  thy  brow  : 
The  working  days  are  the  back  part, 
The  burden  of  the  week  lies  there, 
Making  the  whole  to  stoop  and  bow 
Till  thy  release  appear," 

the  limits  of  the  sacred  lyric  are  so  far  transgressed  that 
there  can  be  no  consideration  of  using  it  in  the  open  con- 
gregation. Yet,  when  the  imagery  is  most  matter  of  fact 
and  ungenial,  there  is  a  body  of  thought  and  there  are  a 
certain  fitness  and  a  clearness  of  relation  that  command 
our  admiration. 

Compare    with    this   the   Sabbath   hymn   of  Bishop 
Wordsworth, 

"  O  day  of  rest  and  gladness, 
O  day  of  joy  and  light, 
O  balm  of  care  and  sadness, 
Most  beautiful,  most  bright;  " 

or  take  the  hymn  for  the  opening  of  service  by  a  much 
inferior  poet,  Samuel  Stennet,  when  he  sings, 


WHAT  IS  A  HYMN?  147 

"  How  charming  is  the  place, 
Where  my  Redeemer  God 
Unveils  the  beauties  of  His  face, 
And  sheds  His  love  abroad. 

"  Here,  on  the  mercy  seat, 

With  radiant  glory  crowned, 
Our  joyful  eyes  behold  Him  sit, 
And  smile  on  all  around. 

"  Give  me,  O  Lord,  a  place 
Within  Thy  blest  abode, 
Among  the  children  of  Thy  grace, 
The  servants  of  my  God." 

There  are  no  striking,  not  to  say  startling,  thoughts  or 
figures  of  speech  here.  All  is  natural,  spontaneous, 
musical, — a  fit  expression  of  an  emotion  all  may  appre- 
ciate and  share.  The  same  hymn  writer  nearly  spoiled  a 
fine  hymn  by  beginning  it, 

"  To  Christ,  the  Lord,  let  every  tongue 
Its  noblest  tribute  bring ; 
When  He's  the  subject  of  the  song 
Who  can  refuse  to  sing  ?  ' ' 

The  hymn  revisers  did  well  when  they  dropped  this  and 
another  stanza  and  began  with  the  noble  lines, 

"  Majestic  sweetness  sits  enthroned 
Upon  the  Saviour's  brow." 

The  Scotch  professor,  John  Stuart  Blackie,  has  a 
strong  lyric  entitled  "  Sabbath  Hymn  on  the  Mountains." 
It  is  full  of  elevated  sentiment  and  a  very  splendour  of 
noble  phraseology.  It  makes  fine  reading  ;  it  is  a  rare 
spiritual  tonic,  but  it  is  not  singable.  His  figures  are  too 
large  and  extended,  the  thought  is  too  discursive.  How 
picturesque  is  the  verse  ; 


148  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

"  Praise  ye  the  Lord  ! 
Here  where  the  loch,  the  dark  mountain's  fair  daughter, 
Down  the  red  scaur  flings  the  white  streaming  water, 
Leaping  and  tossing  and  swirling  forever, 
Down  to  the  bed  of  the  smooth  rolling  river, 
Praise  ye  the  Lord  !  " 

Yet  how  impossible  on  the  lips  of  a  worshipping  congre- 
gation !  This  is  not  adverse  criticism  of  the  poem,  but  a 
noting  of  its  limitations.  Probably  the  thought  of  its 
being  used  as  a  hymn  in  the  public  service  never  entered 
Dr.  Blackie's  mind. 

It  must  also  be  recognized  that  there  are  limits  to  the 
expression  congregational  music  can  give.  The  com- 
poser of  hymn  tunes  has  too  few  resources  at  his  com- 
mand to  fittingly  set  such  a  hymn  as  Henry  Kirke 
White's  : 

"  The  Lord  our  God  is  full  of  might, 
The  winds  obey  His  will  j 
He  speaks, — and  in  His  heaven's  height 
The  rolling  sun  stands  still. 

u  Rebel,  ye  waves,  and  o'er  the  land 
With  threatening  aspect  roar  ; 
The  Lord  uplifts  His  awful  hand 
And  chains  you  to  the  shore. 

"  Howl,  winds  of  night,  your  force  combine; 
Without  His  high  behest, 
Ye  shall  not  in  the  mountain  pine 
Disturb  the  sparrow's  nest. 

u  His  voice  sublime  is  heard  afar, 
In  distant  peals  it  dies  ; 
He  yokes  the  whirlwind  to  His  car 
And  sweeps  the  howling  skies." 

With  a  chorus  of  a  thousand  trained  singers,  an  organ  of 


WHAT  IS  A  HYMN  !  149 

extraordinary  power,  and  an  orchestra  of  five  hundred  in- 
struments, all  concentrated  on  "  St.  Anns,"  one  might  make 
the  music  adequate  to  the  words,  but  in  an  ordinary  con- 
gregation the  incongruity  is  painful.  This  must  remain 
a  reading  hymn,  if  hymn  it  can  be  called. 

Indeed,  one  may  lay  down  the  rule  that  sacred  poems 
containing  strong  figures  of  speech,  strange  conceits  or 
fanciful  phrases,  render  the  poem  too  complicated  for 
general  use  as  a  hymn. 

Dr.  Breed  says  wisely  and  well  that  "  the  true  lyric 
does  not  receive  its  best  interpretation  until  it  is  sung ;  so 
that  it  is  not  enough  to  say  '  It  may  be  sung,'  it  must  be 
sung.  It  is  not  well  interpreted  until  it  is  sung.  It  does 
not  express  all  its  meaning  nor  exert  all  its  power." 
Simplicity  of  style,  directness  of  expression,  clearness  of 
thought,  absolute  sanity  of  feeling,  practicability  of  meter, 
and  above  all  the  true  lyric  spirit,  must  all  appear  in  a 
sacred  poem  before  it  can  be  spoken  of  as  a  hymn. 

Of  course,  the  subject  matter  of  a  hymn  must  be  relig- 
ious. Fanciful  verses,  with  a  vague  suggestion  of  relig- 
ious meaning,  like  "  The  Beautiful  Isle  of  Somewhere," 
or  "  Some  Sweet  Day,"  have  no  claim  to  the  title  of 
hymn.  There  is  no  kernel  of  earnest  religious  thought 
in  them.  There  is  no  devoutness  in  their  vague,  inver- 
tebrate fancifulness.  On  the  other  hand,  a  hymn  may 
be  the  expression  of  religious  truth  clothed  in  verbiage 
that  shall  exalt  and  inspire.  The  First  Psalm  is  a 
didactic  expression  of  the  doctrine  of  rewards  and 
punishments,  and  what  David  did  under  divine  inspira- 
tion surely  we  may  do  in  our  own  day  and  generation. 
There  is  no  reason  why  an  assembly  should  not  sing 
truth  as  well  as  recite  it,  as  it  does  in  the  Apostles'  or  in 
the  Athanasian  Creed.     At  the  same  time,  this  religious 


150  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

truth  must  have  a  poetic  element ;  mere  didactic  expres- 
sion in  rhyme  of  bald  theological  doctrine  is  not  a  hymn. 
Despite  Dr.  Austin  Phelps'  rejection  of  this  hymn  as 
"  without  the  wings  of  song,"  I  insist  that  even  if  the  last 
stanza  of  Doddridge's  "  Prayer  is  the  soul's  sincere  de- 
sire "  were  omitted,  it  would  still  be  a  hymn,  because  the 
doctrine  of  prayer  is  clothed  in  such  beautiful  and  inspir- 
ing language  that  it  is  eminently  fitted  for  the  expres- 
sion of  a  congregation  in  song.  But  when  Heber  drops 
from  the  elevated  style  of  his  great  hymn  of  worship  to 
the  Trinity  into  the  line, 

"God  in  three  persons,  blessed  Trinity," 

he  drops  from  poetry  into  prose,  however  clear  and 
succinct  the  statement  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity 
may  be. 

There  may  also  be  a  striking  statement  of  religious  ex- 
perience.    Medley's  hymn, 

"  Oh,  could  I  speak  the  matchless  worth," 

in  not  a  single  phrase  addresses  the  Deity.  It  is  a  purely 
subjective  expression  of  delight  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  yet  how  impressive,  how  delightful,  how  eminently 
worthy  of  the  feelings  of  any  great  congregation  is  this 
hymn  of  Christian  joy.  As  soon  as  any  spiritual  ex- 
perience is  one  that  every  Christian  can  share  and  under- 
stand, the  hymn  expressing  it  in  a  poetical  and  inspiring 
way  will  be  found  useful  in  the  general  congregation. 

But  while  the  body  of  thought  in  a  hymn  must  be  dis- 
tinctly religious,  and  therefore  Scriptural,  it  does  not  fol- 
low that  the  forms  of  expression  must  be  Scriptural  as 
well.     Dr.  Breed  here  seems  to  me  at  fault :     u  Nothing 


WHAT  IS  A  HYMN?  151 

should  be  called  a  hymn  and  nothing  should  be  sung  in 
our  assemblies  which  is  not  virtually  a  paraphrase — and 
that  a  very  faithful  one — of  Scripture  passages,  whether 
they  are  immediately  connected  in  the  Holy  Word  or 
not."  Apply  that  rule  to  our  hymn-books  and  what 
would  we  have  left  ? 

"  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul, 
Let  me  to  Thy  bosom  fly, 
While  the  nearer  waters  roll, 
While  the  tempest  still  is  high." 

Where  is  the  warrant  in  Biblical  phraseology  for  calling 
Christ  the  lover  of  a  soul,  or  where  is  His  bosom  indicated 
as  a  refuge  ?  While  Biblical  phrases  do  occur  in  most  of 
them,  and  while  they  are  all  the  better  for  their  spontane- 
ous use  of  them,  the  best  hundred  hymns  would  show 
very  much  less  faithful  paraphrase  of  Scripture  language 
than  they  would  original  phraseology.  Indeed  a  very 
close  adherence  to  Dr.  Breed's  rule  would  stifle  the  poet's 
spontaneity,  and  make  his  hymn  like  most  of  the  metrical 
psalms,  stiff  and  mechanical.  Such  a  rule  to  the  cursory 
reader  may  seem  very  devout,  but  really  it  is  mischievous  ; 
it  is  sheer  bibliolatry,  an  emphasis  of  the  letter  that 
killeth  at  the  expense  of  the  spirit  that  maketh  alive. 

At  first  blush  it  may  seem  a  little  absurd  that  the 
members  of  a  congregation  should  sing  at  each  other  such 
a  hymn  as 

"  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus," 
or 

"  Work,  for  the  night  is  coming." 
But   this   is   an   artificial   and  not  a  genuine  objection. 


152  PEACTIOAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

The  instinct  of  the  human  race  is  towards  the  singing  of 
just  such  hortatory  songs  as  these.  The  Marseilles 
Hymn,  which  was  one  of  the  strongest  influences  lead- 
ing to  the  French  Revolution,  is  simply  an  exhortation ; 
but  it  swept  the  French  people  off  their  feet  and  prepared 
the  way  for  the  great  transformation  of  the  social  struc- 
ture of  the  nation.  Numberless  other  instances  might  be 
given  showing  how  in  the  song  life  of  the  people, 
secularly  as  well  as  religiously,  the  hortatory,  admonitory 
element  has  spontaneously  manifested  itself.  The  Church 
has  gone  on  producing  and  singing  these  hymns  through- 
out all  generations  from  the  time  of  David  until  now, 
because  the  impulse  is  native  to  the  human  heart.  What 
is  the  Fourteenth  Psalm  but  an  exhortation  ?  Nay,  more, 
it  is  an  expostulation  with  those  who  are  outside  of  the 
kingdom  and  a  denunciation  of  their  evil  acts.  I  pre- 
sume the  children  of  Israel  never  felt  any  incongruity  in 
singing  the  Thirty-seventh  Psalm,  with  its  purely  didactic 
and  hortatory  style.  In  isolated  passages  the  Psalms  are 
full  of  admonition  and  exhortation,  and  throughout  the 
history  of  the  Christian  Church  the  genuine  and  sponta- 
neous impulse  to  sing  needed  encouragement,  to  saints  and 
unbelievers  alike,  has  been  used  of  God  for  edification  and 
awakening. 

Some  minds,  although  strong  and  keen,  seem  to  have 
a  very  small  visual  angle.  They  can  see  only  one  side, 
or  one  part  of  a  subject  at  a  time.  Some  such  persons 
condemn  all  hymns  that  are  not  direct  praise.  The  line 
in  Lyte's  "  Abide  with  Me,"  "  Hold  Thou  Thy  cross  be- 
fore my  closing  eyes  "  has  been  objected  to  by  others  as 
Romish.  Others  exclude  hymns  in  which  the  pronoun 
of  the  first  person  and  singular  number  occurs.  Bishop 
Wordsworth,  himself  a  hymn  writer  of  no  mean  merit 


WHAT  IS  A  HYMN?  153 

(vide  M  O  Day  of  rest  and  gladness  "  and  "  See,  the  Con- 
queror rides  in  triumph  "),  says,  in  his  introduction  to  his 
"  Holy  Year,"  that  while  the  ancient  hymns  are  distin- 
guished by  self-forgetfulness,  the  modern  hymns  are  char- 
acterized by  self-consciousness.  As  illustrative  examples 
he  cites  the  following :  "  When  I  can  read  my  title 
clear,"  "  When  I  survey  the  wondrous  cross,"  "  My  God, 
the  spring  of  all  my  joys  " ;  he  also  quotes  as  illustrating 
not  only  this  egotistical  character,  but  also  a  certain  rep- 
rehensible self-assurance  and  a  familiar  and  even  amatory 
style  of  address, 

"  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul, 
Let  me  to  Thy  bosom  fly  ;  " 

which  he  says  he  has  "  heard  given  out  to  be  sung  by 
every  member  of  a  large  mixed  congregation,  in  a  dis- 
solute part  of  a  populous  and  irreligious  city  "  ! 

The  minister,  with  his  eye  fixed  upon  his  spiritual  pur- 
pose, can  afford  to  ignore  all  these  supersensitive  critics 
who  have  refined  refinement  until  sensibility  becomes 
hyperesthesia,  a  veritable  disease.  A  sane  common 
sense  is  more  trustworthy  in  its  conclusions  than  the  feel- 
ings of  these  critics  who  are  morbidly  acute  to  possible 
incongruities. 

There  has  been  an  attempt  made  to  secure  a  standard 
of  hymn  values  by  appeal  to  the  usage  of  hymn-book 
compilers.  Several  such  collections  have  been  made,  the 
best  one  being  that  of  Rev.  Louis  F.  Benson,  D.  D.  The 
results  are  not  entirely  satisfactory,  for  other  considera- 
tions than  sheer  value  control  the  minds  of  hymn-book 
editors.  The  lack  of  definite  reference  to  Christ,  or  to 
the  Trinity,  has  led  some  compilers  to  reject  "  Nearer, 
My  God,  to  Thee,"  and  so  reduced  its  relative  rank.     On 


154  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

the  other  hand,  the  inclusion  in  the  list  of  hymnals  con- 
sulted of  a  disproportionate  number  of  Anglican  collec- 
tions with  their  emphasis,  of  morning  and  evening  serv- 
ices, has  given  Bishop  Ken's  "  Evening  Hymn  "  a  stand- 
ing utterly  above  its  real  value.  The  striking  absence  of 
Christmas  hymns  that  rise  above  the  dignity  of  carols 
has  led  to  so  frequent  a  use  of  Wesley's  "  Hark,  the 
herald  angels  sing"  as  to  give  it  a  place  much  higher  in 
the  list  than  its  real  value  warrants.  There  is  no  other 
hymn  on  the  second  coming  of  Christ  equal  to  Cennick's 
11  Lo,  He  comes,  with  clouds  descending,"  and  few  com- 
pilers would  think  of  omitting  it  under  that  head ;  but 
while  that  fact  produces  an  apparent  unanimity  as  to  its 
value,  it  does  not  render  it  worthy  to  be  classed  as  one 
of  the  four  masterpieces  of  English  hymnology,  as  does 
Rev.  Jas.  King  in  his  "  Anglican  Hymnology."  In  like 
manner  Heber's  u  From  Greenland's  icy  mountains  "  is 
accorded  a  high  place  because  of  its  inevitable  selection 
as  a  missionary  hymn,  not  because  of  its  intrinsic  value. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  nearly  half  of  Dr.  Benson's  list. 
If  proper  allowances  are  made  for  the  operation  of  these 
and  other  considerations  in  the  minds  of  editors,  this  col- 
lation has  only  a  slight  residuum  of  value.  The  mere 
fact  that  "Just  as  I  am"  is  rated  twenty-sixth,  and  that 
"  My  faith  looks  up  to  Thee  "  does  not  appear  at  all  among 
the  best  thirty-two,  will  indicate  to  most  thoughtful  people 
the  futility  of  such  an  effort  to  find  a  standard  of  merit. 

But  if  a  standard  is  to  be  established  by  the  mere 
counting  of  noses,  why  not  canvass  ten  thousand  leading 
pastors  and  get  a  list  of  the  hymns  they  have  actually 
used  in  their  services  during  the  previous  year.  Such  a 
consensus  would  have  much  greater  weight  in  determin- 
ing the  relative  value  of  our  best  hymns. 


WHAT  IS  A  HYMN!  155 

May  I  modestly  submit  that  this  whole  effort  of  assign- 
ing a  relative  rank  to  our  hymns  is  like  diplomatic  pre- 
cedence at  a  state  dinner,  mere  child's  play.  The  per- 
sonal equation  in  any  such  effort  to  attain  a  fixed  stand- 
ard is  too  pronounced  a  factor,  and  too  irresponsible  and 
elusive  to  be  properly  estimated,  to  make  any  such  at- 
tempt anything  more  than  an  interesting  pastime. 

As  in  the  Psalms,  so,  of  course,  in  the  hymns,  the  great 
burden  must  ever  be  the  expression  of  devotion  to  God, 
of  thanksgiving  for  temporal  blessings,  of  adoration  for 
His  mercy  and  love  as  manifested  in  the  salvation  wrought 
out  for  us.  While  doctrinaires  and  theorists  have  been 
insisting  that  all  hymns  must  be  devotional  and  worship- 
ful, the  Church  in  actual  use  has  rather  been  neglecting 
hymns  of  this  character.  Is  it  true  that  we  are  losing 
our  sense  of  the  divine  presence  ?  As  we  assemble  for 
the  public  service,  is  there  no  consciousness  of  the  Infinite 
One  before  whom  the  heart  should  bow  down  in  adora- 
tion and  humility  ?  Is  the  word  "  God  "  a  symbol  whose 
meaning  is  little  by  little  escaping  from  us  ?  How  else 
can  we  understand  that  in  so  many  services  from  begin- 
ning to  end  there  is  not  a  single  expression  of  worship  ? 
The  consciousness  of  God  is  after  all  the  foundation  of  all 
religious  experience.  It  should  find  expression  more 
largely  than  any  other  feeling  of  the  human  heart.  The 
minister,  therefore,  should  acquaint  himself  with  the  lead- 
ing hymns  of  praise,  adoration,  and  thanksgiving  so  thor- 
oughly that  his  heart  shall  respond  to  the  varied  feeling 
and  truth  of  each. 


Ill 

IS  THE  GOSPEL  SONG  A  HYMN  ? 

IN  discussing  the  Gospel  song  in  a  previous  chapter, 
I  abstained  from  the  consideration  of  its  words. 
The  question  now  arises  whether  we  shall  include 
the  Gospel  and  the  Sunday-school  hymn  under  the  gen- 
eral definition  of  a  hymn.  Dr.  Breed  is  quite  satisfied  that 
u  as  to  the  poetic  material  of  these  songs  this  much  is 
certain — they  are  not  hymns."  But  if  the  writings  of 
Fanny  Crosby  are  not  hymns,  why  should  those  of 
Frances  R.  Havergal  be  accepted  as  such  ?  What  is  the 
inherent  difference  between  the  two  sets  of  verses  on 
consecration, 

"  Take  my  life  and  let  it  be 
Consecrated,  Lord,  to  Thee," 

and 

"I  am  Thine,  O  Lord,  I  have  heard  Thy  voice, 
And  it  told  Thy  love  to  me  ; 
But  I  long  to  rise  in  the  arms  of  faith 
And  be  closer  drawn  to  Thee." 

Certainly  the  mere  matter  of  meter,  the  former  being  in 
plain  7s  meter  and  the  latter  peculiar  meter,  is  not  of 
commanding  importance  !  While  Miss  Havergal's  cata- 
logue of  gifts  to  the  Lord  is  quite  skillfully  developed,  it 
is  not  sufficiently  so  to  avoid  the  mechanical  monotony 
fatal  to  good  poetry.  The  third  verse  of  Fanny  Crosby's 
hymn, 

156 


and 


IS  THE  GOSPEL  SONG  A  HYMN?  157 

"  Oh,  the  pure  delight  of  a  single  hour 
That  before  Thy  throne  I  spend, 
When  I  kneel  in  prayer  and  with  Thee,  my  God, 
I  commune  as  friend  with  friend," 

is  certainly  more  musical,  and  more  emotional,  and  more 
poetical  than  any  of  Miss  Havergal's  verses.  As  the  lat- 
ter are  frequently  sung  with  a  chorus,  that  cannot  be  the 
fundamental  flaw  in  the  former. 

What  is  the  radical  distinction  between 

"  Saviour,  more  than  life  to  me, 
I  am  clinging  close  to  Thee ;  " 

"  Saviour,  whom  I  fain  would  love, 
Jesus,  crucified  for  me, 
Fix  my  roving  heart  above 
Draw  me  nearer  unto  Thee," 

that  the  latter  is  a  hymn  and  the  other  without  the 
pale  ?  I  take  the  first  hymn  of  a  collection  of  Sunday- 
school  and  Gospel  songs  and  quote  the  first  two  verses. 
I  also  quote  two  verses  of  an  accepted  hymn  on  the  same 
general  theme,  Praise  to  Christ.  How  many  of  my 
readers  will  be  able  to  say  which  is  the  Gospel  song  and 
which  the  standard  hymn  ? 

"To  Him  who  for  our  sins  was  slain, 
To  Him  for  all  His  dying  pain 

Sing  we  Alleluia  1 
To  Him,  the  Lamb,  our  Sacrifice, 
Who  gave  His  soul  our  ransom-price, 

Sing  we  Alleluia  ! 

"To  Him,  who  now  for  us  doth  plead, 
And  helpeth  us  in  all  our  need, 

Sing  we  Alleluia  ! 
To  Him,  who  doth  prepare  on  high 
Our  home  in  immortality, 

Sing  we  Alleluia  !  " 


158  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

Is  the  foregoing  or  the  following  the  Gospel  song  ? 

"Lift  up  the  gates  of  praise, 
That  we  may  enter  in, 
And  o'er  Salvation's  walls  proclaim 
That  Christ  redeems  from  sin. 
God's  works  reveal  His  might, 
His  majesty  and  grace ; 
But  not  the  tender  Father's  love 
That  saves  a  dying  race. 

"The  stars  may  praise  the  Hand 
That  decks  the  sky  above  ; 
But  man  alone  can  tell  the  pow'r 
Of  Christ's  redeeming  love. 
Then  let  the  voice  of  praise 
To  heavenly  courts  ascend, 
Till  with  the  songs  the  angels  sing 
Our  Hallelujahs  blend." 

I  might  go  on  indefinitely  quoting  the  better  class 
of  Gospel  hymns  and  comparing  them  with  accepted 
standard  hymns  of  like  sentiment,  but  I  have  done  so 
sufficiently  to  show  that  there  is  no  dividing  line  of  in- 
trinsic character  or  merit.  Dr.  Breed's  statement  is  one 
of  those  ad  captandum  judgments  that  are  undiscriminat- 
ing  and  therefore  unjust. 

Why  should  we  not  accept  a  Gospel  hymn  ?  It  is 
often  "  a  sacred  poem  expressive  of  devotion,  spiritual 
experience,  or  religious  truth,  fitted  to  be  sung  by  a  con- 
gregation in  public  service,"  is  it  not  ? 

But  it  is  often  urged  that  these  Gospel  hymns  are  un- 
dignified, illiterate,  and  crude.  But  who  dares  to  say  that 
all  of  them  deserve  such  a  characterization  ?  And  who 
will  venture  to  assert  that  none  of  the  plain  hymns  have 
been  crude  and  in  violation  of  all  good  taste  ?  To  pick 
out  the  crudest  and  most  hopelessly  banal  of  the  current 


IS  THE  GOSPEL  SONG  A  HYMN  »  159 

Gospel  and  Sunday-school  hymns  and  to  compare  them 
with  the  best  standard  hymns,  the  survival  of  the  fittest, 
written  during  the  whole  history  of  the  Christian  Church, 
is  eminently  unjust,  and  indicates  a  blind  prejudice  that  is 
as  unscholarly  and  unscientific  as  it  is  unfair. 

Equally  unjust  is  the  constant  and  cheap  accusation  of 
commercialism  made  against  editors  and  publishers  of 
this  class  of  music.  It  would  seem  to  apply  with  as 
great  or  even  greater  force  to  the  promoters  of  high  class 
hymnals,  which  have  multiplied  so  greatly  in  recent  years, 
and  which  have  been  pushed  by  wide  advertising  and 
personal  canvass  of  the  churches  with  a  business  vigour 
and  urgency  unknown  to  the  publishers  of  popular  music. 
May  we  not  rather  assume  that  the  Christian  men  issuing 
both  classes  of  music  are  actuated  by  equally  worthy  and 
laudable  motives  ? 

'  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  same  opposition  met 
the  Reformers  in  Germany,  France,  and  Great  Britain 
when  the  chorals  and  psalm  versions  were  introduced. 
Marot's  "  Sanctes  Chansonettes,"  metrical  versions  of  the 
Psalms,  were  popular  in  the  frivolous  court  of  Francis  of 
France,  and  were  sung  to  ballad  tunes  that  had  anything 
but  hallowed  associations.  They  were  soon  forbidden  by 
the  ecclesiastical  authorities  and  their  author  driven  from 
the  court.  None  the  less  they  furnished  Calvin  the  seed 
for  the  harvest  of  noble  psalm  singing  which  is  even  yet 
being  reaped.  Thomas  Warton  speaks  of  the  interest  the 
people  took  in  these  newly  introduced  metrical  psalms  as 
an  "  infectious  frenzy  of  sacred  song.  ...  It  was  a 
sign  by  which  men's  affections  to  the  work  of  the  Ref- 
ormation were  everywhere  measured,  whether  they  used 
to  sing  (metrical  psalms)  or  not."  The  same  outcry  was 
heard   against  the  hymns   of  Watts   and  a  little   later 


160  PKACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

against  those  of  the  Methodists.  Even  now,  in  Ger- 
many there  is  frequent  protest  against  the  use  in  church 
service  of  the  simpler  "  folk  "  hymns,  like  "  Harre  des 
Herrn,"  "  Ich  will  streben,"  "  Lass  mich  gehen,"  "  Hier 
ist  mein  Herz,"  "  Sei  getreu  bis  in  den  Tod,"  because 
they  are  more  recent  in  origin  and  have  not  the  severe 
dignity  of  the  ancient  hymns  and  chorals.  Yet  many  of 
them  have  a  piety  and  devoutness  peculiarly  character- 
istic of  the  German  spiritual  life. 

I  have  taken  no  brief  for  the  defense  of  the  current  Gos- 
pel and  Sunday-school  hymn — I  am  only  pleading  for  a 
fair,  discriminating,  unprejudiced  consideration  of  its 
merits  and  demerits.  Few  persons  have  had  better  op- 
portunities than  I  of  realizing  those  demerits. 

I  remember  one  book  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago 
which  was  brought  me  by  its  publisher  because  it  had 
been  seriously  criticised,  and  he  wished  the  necessary  cor- 
rections made.  When  I  brought  him  a  single  page  with 
over  sixty  corrections  that  seemed  to  me  peremptorily 
necessary,  he  threw  up  his  hands.  The  book  would  have 
had  to  be  entirely  reedited  and  reset,  an  expense  he  re- 
fused to  consider.  Yet  that  book  sold  by  the  hundred 
thousand  and  sells  to  this  day  despite  its  faultiness. 
Other  books  are  not  so  musically  weak,  but  the  texts  are 
vulgar  and  ill-written.  Within  a  year  a  book  with  Eng- 
lish as  well  as  American  imprint  reached  my  desk  con- 
taining original  hymns  of  which  the  following  lines  are 
representative : 

"  I  would  rather  be  enlisted  to  fight  the  fight  of  faith, 
And  give  and  take  no  quarter  in  that  war, 
Than  enjoy  religious  clatter  for  a  season  on  the  earth 
And  go  down  to  hell  a  multi-millionaire." 

Even  yet  many  of  the  collections  of  these  popular  songs 


IS  THE  GOSPEL  SONG  A  HYMN!  161 

are  issued  by  persons  lacking  both  literary  and  musical 
culture.  Think  of  a  school  singing  about  a  spiritual 
cowboy,  or  about  Christ  as  a  railroad  engineer !  A 
score  of  songs  have  been  written  on  the  pagan  con- 
ception of  death  as  Charon's  ferry,  and  children  all  over 
the  land  have  been  vociferously  "  Waiting  for  the  Boat- 
man "  who  should  bear  them  o'er  the  tide.  I  call  to  mind 
a  book  issued  by  a  woman  evangelist  in  one  of  whose 
hymns  occurred  these  most  delectable  lines, 

"  And  then  with  a  hop,  a  skip,  and  a  jump 
I  entered  the  beautiful  stream." 

The  author  of  one  of  the  most  widely  used  Gospel 
hymns  that  have  recently  been  introduced  once  sent  me 
a  hymn  whose  closing  stanza  ran  about  as  follows : 

"  And  when  I  get  to  glory, 
And  enter  at  the  gate, 
I'll  shout  the  grand  old  story, 
I'm  saved  up  to  date  ! 

Saved  up  to  date, 

Saved  up  to  date, 
I'll  shout  the  grand  old  story, 

I'm  saved  up  to  date  !  " 

One  of  the  great  difficulties  in  judging  of  this  class  of 
hymns  is  that  the  rubbish  among  it  is  still  strongly  in 
evidence,  while  the  rubbish  produced  in  preceding  gen- 
erations has  been  swept  out  into  oblivion  by  the  tide  of 
the  years.  We  forget  the  unspeakable  crudities  and  the 
horrible  cacophony  of  the  early  metrical  psalms.  In  the 
presence  of  the  forty  surviving  hymns  of  Watts  and  the 
barely  equal  number  of  Wesley,  one  is  inclined  to  over- 
look the  thousands  of  weak  and  puerile  verses  that 
were  written  in  their  day.     It  would  be  difficult  to  find, 


162  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

even  in  the  outer  darkness  of  the  most  vulgar  Sunday- 
school  rhymes  of  to-day,  such  lines  as  Watts  wrote : 

"  Tame  heifers  here  their  thirst  allay, 
And  for  the  stream  wild  asses  bray," 


and 


and 


"  The  devil  tempts  one  mother's  son 
To  rage  against  another ; 
So  wicked  Cain  was  hurried  on 
Till  he  had  killed  his  brother," 


"  I'll  purge  my  family  around 
And  make  the  wicked  flee." 


It  does  not  seem  possible  that  the  writer  of 

"  Jesus,  lover  of  my  soul  " 
or 

"  Hark,  the  herald  angels  sing  " 

should  write  such  doggerel,  and  yet  among  the  published 
hymns  of  Charles  Wesley  may  be  found, 

"  Idle  men  and  boys  are  found 
Standing  on  the  devil's  ground; 
He  will  give  them  work  to  do, 
He  will  pay  their  wages  too." 

Not  much  better  are  the  following  verses : 

"  How  wretched  are  the  boys  at  school, 

Who  wickedly  delight 
To  mock  and  call  each  other  fool, 

And  with  each  other  fight ; 
Who  soon  their  innocency  lose, 

And  learn  to  curse  and  swear ; 
Or  if  they  do  no  harm,  suppose 

That  good  enough  they  are." 


IS  THE  GOSPEL  SONG  A  HYMN?  163 

One  would  think  that  the  sense  of  humour  that  enabled 
Cowper  to  write  "  John  Gilpin's  Ride  "  would  have  pre- 
vented his  writing  the  following  medical  lines  : 

"  Not  such  as  hypocrites  suppose 
Who  with  a  graceless  heart 
Taste  not  of  Thee,  but  drink  a  dose 
Prepared  by  Satan's  art." 

How  colloquial  his  style  when  the  same  hymn  writer  por- 
trays a  domestic  scene : 

"  Martha  her  love  and  joy  expressed 
By  care  to  entertain  her  guest ; 
While  Mary  sat  to  hear  her  Lord 
And  could  not  bear  to  lose  a  word." 

If  the  great  poets  and  hymn  writers  of  their  age  wrote 
such  stuff  at  times,  what  must  have  been  the  character  of 
the  verses  of  the  obscure  scribblers  and  poetasters  of  their 
day !  No,  our  generation  in  this  country  has  no  mon- 
opoly of  graceless,  thoughtless,  and  platitudinous  hymns, 
in  spite  of  the  sharp  expostulations  of  "  those  whose 
hymnological  culture  has  been  directed  by  their  indi- 
vidual tastes,"  to  use  Dr.  Austin  Phelps'  illuminating 
phrase. 

While  the  amount  of  musical  and  literary  rot  that  has 
been  issued  in  this  country  has  been  humiliatingly  large, 
it  would  be  most  unjust  to  condemn  all  these  popular 
hymns  en  masse  without  discrimination.  As  well  con- 
demn all  sermons  because  a  large  proportion  of  those 
formerly  preached  in  our  land  and  still  preached  in  some 
parts  of  it,  are  wanting  in  thoughtfulness,  literary  finish, 
or  elocutionary  grace.  It  would  be  far  more  just  to  con- 
demn  the  mongrel  architectural  style  of  many  of  our 


164  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

modern  churches,  or  the  tasteless,  inharmonious  u  ar- 
tistic "  glass  that  is  supposed  to  adorn  them. 

The  fact  is,  that  out  of  this  popular  movement  for  re- 
ligious musical  expression  has  grown  a  body  of  song 
that  has  gone  round  the  world  and  brought  untold  bless- 
ing to  millions.  England  sings  our  Gospel  and  Sunday- 
school  songs  more  generally  than  it  does  its  own  fine 
cathedral  tunes.  Germany  has  translated  the  finest  of 
them  and  its  devout  pietistic  and  methodistic  circles  use 
them  ever  more  widely.  Missionaries  have  carried  them 
to  the  utmost  ends  of  the  earth  and  in  strange  tongues 
and  dialects  our  American  Sunday-school  songs  are  sung 
by  delighted  heathen  children.  What  God  has  blessed 
so  wonderfully,  surely  we  cannot  call  utterly  unclean. 

These  songs  are  after  all  the  sincere  expression  of  a 
certain  stage  of  culture  of  mind  and  soul.  That  stage 
may  not  be  high  nor  admirable,  but  it  must  be  allowed 
its  spontaneous  expression.  A  scholarly  and  discrimi- 
nating writer  has  wisely  said  that  "  The  Divine  Spirit  has 
always  employed  the  ministry  of  that  poetry  which  was 
the  poetry  of  the  age  .  .  .  as  He  has  always  hal- 
lowed the  prevalent  dialects  of  speech."  Each  hymn  is 
an  effort,  more  or  less  successful,  to  express  anew,  and  in 
a  way  that  shall  be  adapted  to  the  passing  shade  of  feel- 
ing, and  according  to  the  passing  method  of  expression, 
the  everlasting  truths  that  lie  at  the  foundation  of  Chris- 
tianity and  the  perennial  emotions  which  these  truths 
call  forth  from  the  human  heart.  In  them  are  found  the 
little  details  of  physiognomy  which  manifest  the  indi- 
viduality of  the  generation.  They  appeal  to  the  particu- 
lar idiosyncrasies  of  each  generation  in  a  way  that  even 
the  standard  hymns  of  the  ages  cannot,  and  it  is  for  this 
reason  they  are  often  so  popular. 


IS  THE  GOSPEL  SONG  A  HYMN!  165 

Every  generation  has  had  its  own  ephemeral  hym- 
nology  and  will  continue  to  have  it  in  spite  of  all  the 
scolding  critics.  Methods  and  plans  and  even  vast  or- 
ganizations change  from  generation  to  generation  and 
no  one  feels  that  a  change  proves  them  to  have  been 
valueless.  The  true  critic  and  philosopher  understands 
that  these  changes  are  the  proof  of  life.  Dr.  Phelps 
might  not  have  approved  the  use  of  his  words  in  this 
connection,  but  his  plea  for  the  recognition  of  contem- 
porary hymns  applies  none  the  less.  "  There  must  be 
breadth  of  range  in  our  hymnology,  in  order  to  flexibility 
in  its  expression  of  a  diversified  religious  life.  We  need 
hymns  for  every  existing  mood  of  devotion ;  and  for  these 
we  must  be  indebted,  in  part,  to  living  poets.  In  no 
other  manner  can  the  real  life  of  the  Church  be  symmet- 
rically expressed  in  song."  When  our  religious  people 
stop  writing  and  singing  new  songs  and  are  satisfied  to 
sing  over  and  over  again  the  songs  of  preceding  ages,  it 
will  prove  that  the  process  of  ossification  has  set  in  and 
that  vital  force  is  passing  away.  Better  that  literary  un- 
skillfulness  and  mediocre  musical  talent  shall  continue  to 
write,  better  to  have  ephemeral,  shallow,  and  unsatisfying 
songs  written  by  the  thousands,  than  that  the  impulse  to 
express  the  vital  godliness  within  shall  be  entirely  lost. 

I  remember  once  reading  in  a  religious  journal  a  re- 
view of  a  certain  collection  of  popular  songs  with  which 
the  reviewer  found  serious  fault  because  its  new  hymns 
were  not  equal  to  the  standard  hymns  included  in  the 
book  !  That  is  to  say,  the  choice  hymns  that  have  sur- 
vived through  generations  of  usefulness,  each  of  which 
was  the  sole  survivor  of  a  thousand  hymns  written  in  its 
day,  are  better  than  the  current  hymns  of  our  own  day. 
How  absurd  such  a  complaint  is,  and  yet  in  one  way  or 


166  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

another  it  is  being  constantly  made.  Of  course,  these 
current  songs  are  not  equal  to  the  standard  hymns  !  No 
one  in  his  sober  senses  would  claim  they  are ;  and  yet 
here  and  there  out  of  this  mass  of  song,  some  of  it  very 
bad,  most  of  it  indifferently  bad,  a  little  of  it  fairly  good, 
there  emerge  in  the  course  of  the  years  a  few  hymns 
which  the  world  would  be  sorry  to  lose,  but  which  would 
never  have  been  written,  if  the  weak  and  ephemeral 
hymns,  among  which  they  sprang  into  being,  had  not 
had  their  opportunity  as  well. 


IV 

THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS 

WITH  such  a  clear-cut  and  practical  conception 
of  the  hymn  the  minister  is  prepared  to  make 
a  careful  and  thorough  study  of  the  history  of 
hymns.  Next  to  his  library  of  comment  upon  the  Bible 
and  the  exposition  of  the  doctrines  of  the  Bible,  should 
be  his  hymnological  books,  giving  the  history  and  the  il- 
lustrations of  the  hymns  he  uses  in  his  congregation. 

There  is  no  more  reason  why  there  should  be  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  land  within  whose  borders  God  gave  the 
Bible,  than  there  is  that  there  should  be  a  knowledge  of 
the  men  who  have  written  the  hymns  of  the  Church 
and  of  the  circumstances  in  which  these  hymns  were 
written.  Such  a  clear  knowledge  of  the  gradual  develop- 
ment of  the  hymns  of  the  Christian  Church  from  the 
early  beginning,  through  the  meditative  period  of  the 
Greek  and  Latin  monks,  through  the  profoundly  spiritual 
and  elevated  hymns  of  the  German  Reformation,  through 
the  various  versions  of  the  Psalms,  through  the  develop- 
ment of  modern  English  hymnody  from  Watts  to  the 
present  time,  is  vastly  more  important  in  practical  church 
work  than  a  scholarly  knowledge  of  the  development  of 
Christian  institutions,  valuable  as  that  is. 

I  do  not  urge  that  every  minister  should  become  an 
expert  hymnologist.  Life  is  far  too  short  that  he  should 
know  all  of  the  half  million  hymns  now  in  existence  in 
all  languages  and  of  all  times.     But  he  ought  to  know  at 

167 


168  PRACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

least  a  hundred  hymns  intimately,  and  two  hundred  more 
in  a  practical,  workable  way.  To  this  end  he  should  have 
in  his  library  at  least  Duffield's  "  Latin  Hymns  "  and  his 
"  English  Hymns,"  Butterworth's  "  The  Story  of  the 
Hymns  and  Tunes,"  Tillett's  "  Our  Hymns  and  Their 
Authors,"  Horder's  "  The  Hymn  Lover,"  Palgrave's 
"  Treasury  of  Sacred  Song,"  Robinson's  "  Annotations 
upon  Popular  Hymns,"  Stead's  "  Hymns  That  Have 
Helped,"  Bank's  M  Immortal  Hymns,"  and,  if  he  can  af- 
ford it,  Julian's  large  "  Dictionary  of  Hymnology." 

The  study  of  the  minister  in  the  first  place  should  be 
upon  the  literary  phases  of  the  hymns.  Here  a  great 
delight  awaits  the  minister  of  cultivated  taste  and  sensi- 
bility, for  there  are  not  only  ten  really  good  hymns,  as  a 
famous  literary  doctor  once  insisted  to  me,  but  hundreds 
of  them  whose  distinction  and  beauty  of  phraseology, 
whose  fresh  and  orderly  development  of  idea,  and  whose 
elevation  and  glory  of  thought  give  unfailing  literary 
pleasure.  How  can  one  read  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe's 
M  Still,  still  with  Thee,"  that  best  of  American  morning 
hymns,  without  exquisite  delight  ? 

u  Still,  still  with  Thee,  when  purple  morning  breaketh, 
When  the  bird  waketh,  and  the  shadows  flee : 
Fairer  than  morning,  lovelier  than  daylight, 

Dawns  the  sweet  consciousness,  I  am  with  Thee. 

M  Alone  with  Thee,  amid  the  mystic  shadows, 
The  solemn  hush  of  nature  newly  born ; 
Alone  with  Thee,  in  breathless  adoration, 
In  the  calm  dew  and  freshness  of  the  morn. 

u  When  sinks  the  soul,  subdued  by  toil,  to  slumber, 
Its  closing  eye  looks  up  to  Thee  in  prayer ; 
Sweet  the  repose,  beneath  Thy  wings  o'ershadowing, 
But  sweeter  still  to  wake  and  find  Thee  there. 


THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS  169 

M  So  shall  it  be  at  last  in  that  bright  morning 

When  the  soul  waketh,  and  life's  shadows  flee ; 
Oh,  in  that  hour,  and  fairer  than  day's  dawning, 
Shall  rise  the  glorious  thought,  I  am  with  Thee  !  " 

Then  there  is  Whittier's  "  We  may  not  climb  the  heavenly 
steeps,"  whose  charm  is  as  complete  as  it  will  remain  un- 
ceasing. 

"  We  may  not  climb  the  heavenly  steeps 
To  bring  the  Lord  Christ  down  ; 
In  vain  we  search  the  lowest  deeps, 
For  Him  no  depths  can  drown. 

11  But  warm,  sweet,  tender,  even  yet 
A  present  help  is  He ; 
And  faith  has  yet  its  Olivet, 
And  love  its  Galilee. 

"  The  healing  of  the  seamless  dress 
Is  by  our  beds  of  pain ; 
We  touch  Him  in  life's  throng  and  press 
And  we  are  whole  again. 

"  Through  Him  the  first  fond  prayers  are  said 
Our  lips  of  childhood  frame ; 
The  last  low  whispers  of  our  dead 
Are  burdened  with  His  name. 

"  O  Lord  and  Master  of  us  all, 

Whate'er  our  name  or  sign, 
We  own  Thy  sway,  we  hear  Thy  call, 
We  test  our  lives  by  Thine  !  " 

It  would  be  a  mistake  to  assume  that  the  hymns  of 
high  literary  value  are  to  be  found  only  within  the  lids  of 
the  standard  church  hymnals.  Many  of  our  despised 
Gospel  songs  have  really  high  merit.  SpofTord's  "  It  is 
Well  with  My  Soul,"  Bliss'  "Almost  Persuaded," 
Mrs.  Hawk's  "  I  Need  Thee  Every  Hour,"  Mote's  "  The 


170  PEAOTICAL  OHUECH  MUSIC 

Solid  Rock,"  Gilmore's  "  He  Leadeth  Me,"  Miss  Hankey's 
"  I  Love  to  Tell  the  Story,"  Mrs.  Gates'  "  Home  of  the 
Soul,"  Miss  Havergal's  "  What  Hast  Thou  Done  for  Me," 
and  many  others,  have  not  only  pleasing  and  helpful 
sentiment,  but  literary  grace  and  finish. 

The  body  of  thought  and  its  logical  development 
throughout  the  hymn  will  call  for  the  minister's  careful 
analysis.  No  matter  how  charming  the  phrases  may  be, 
no  matter  how  emotional  a  hymn  may  be,  if  there  is  not 
a  solid  basis  of  actual  thought  in  the  hymn,  its  literary 
value  must  necessarily  be  very  low.  Where  there  is  the 
blazing  light  of  emotion  there  must  be  the  genuine 
electrical  charge  producing  it. 

Given  a  definite  germinal  thought  and  its  clear  and 
logical  development,  there  must  also  be  the  musical  and 
impressive  expression  of  it  in  good  idiomatic  English. 
Slovenliness  of  style  either  in  grammar  or  in  rhetoric 
must  greatly  lower  the  value  of  any  hymn.  Crudeness  of 
taste,  ambiguity  of  expression,  lack  of  nice  discrimina- 
tion in  the  words  used,  harsh  and  cacophonous  lines,  will 
further  impair  its  impressiveness. 

Whatever  the  practical  tendencies  of  the  minister  may 
be,  however  fixed  his  eye  may  be  upon  the  goal  of  re- 
sults, he  cannot  for  one  moment  allow  these  to  blind  his 
mental  vision  to  the  actual  literary  merit  of  the  hymns  he 
uses.  He  may  be  willing  to  sing,  "  I  Want  to  Go  There, 
I  Do,"  or  «  When  the  Roll  is  Called,"  or  «  Death  is  Only 
a  Dream,"  because  they  have  a  certain  popular  effective- 
ness, but  he  should  never  allow  himself  or  his  people  to 
feel  that  the  hymns  have  any  literary  value  or  the  music 
any  permanent  worth.  It  were  a  sin  against  himself  and 
his  own  culture,  and  eventually  against  his  work  in  all  its 
phases,  were  he  to  allow  the  ideal  element  to  be  utterly 


THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS  171 

submerged  in  his  own  mind  by  practical  considerations. 
I  most  earnestly  urge,  therefore,  that  in  the  study  of 
hymns  this  literary  element  shall  be  made  prominent, 
even  if  in  practical  work  it  is  not  always  allowed  to  have 
the  commanding  consideration. 

While  the  literary  value  of  hymns  is  to  be  kept  promi- 
nent in  the  mind  of  the  minister,  a  still  more  important 
element  will  be  their  spiritual  force.  Not  every  hymn 
that  has  merit  from  a  literary  standpoint  has  equal  spir- 
itual power.  The  hymns  by  great  poets  have  uniformly 
suffered  from  the  lack  of  the  spiritual  element.  The 
thought  may  be  fresh  and  strong,  the  literary  form  may 
be  without  flaw,  but  somehow  or  other  there  is  lacking 
the  vital  element  of  spiritual  experience.  While  Addison 
and  Pope  and  Milton  and  Longfellow  have  written  hymns, 
none  of  them  have  had  the  vitality  of  hymns  written  by 
greatly  inferior  poets.     Oliver  Wendell  Holmes' 

"Lord  of  all  being,  throned  afar," 

is  very  fine  from  a  literary  standpoint,  and  as  a  general 
hymn  of  worship  to  the  Deity,  whether  conceived  from  a 
Christian,  Mohammedan,  or  deistical  standpoint,  is  equally 
appropriate.  But  there  is  lacking  the  genuine  Christian 
relation  between  God  and  His  people.  The  same  is  even 
more  true  of  Addison's  hymn, 

"  The  spacious  firmament  on  high." 

Perhaps  the  only  poet  of  note  who  has  been  really  suc- 
cessful in  the  writing  of  hymns  has  been  William  Cowper, 
and  who  shall  say  how  much  of  his  success  is  due  to  John 
Newton,  under  whose  influence  he  lived  and  wrote  ? 


172  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

In  general  it  may  be  said  that  if  the  hymn  is  not  spir- 
itual, it  has  very  little  value,  no  matter  what  its  literary 
qualities  may  be,  and  it  is  in  this  spirituality  that  its  true 
life  abides.  Where  there  are  intense  religious  emotion 
and  spiritual  insight,  there  may  even  be  considerable 
lack  in  literary  quality  without  seriously  crippling  its 
temporary  usefulness.  But  the  literary  hymn  without 
spiritual  power  is  rarely  valuable  for  the  realization  of 
actual  results.  It  may  continue  to  appear  in  the  hym- 
nals, because  of  its  literary  finish,  but  it  is  rarely  used. 

It  is  extremely  important  from  a  practical  standpoint 
that  the  minister  should  have  a  good  working  knowledge 
of  the  various  meters  in  which  hymns  are  written.  He 
ought  to  be  able  to  recognize  the  meter  of  any  hymn  by 
a  mere  glance  at  the  form  of  the  stanza.  The  even  lines 
of  long  meter,  the  shorter  second  and  fourth  lines  of  com- 
mon meter,  the  longer  third  line  of  short  meter,  the  equal 
short  lines  of  7s,  the  female  or  double  rhymes  of  the  odd 
lines  in  8s  and  7s,  are  characteristic  and  obvious  enough. 
A  very  little  attention  to  the  less  commonly  used  peculiar 
meters  will  render  them  equally  familiar. 

The  knowledge  of  the  meters  is  particularly  important 
to  the  rural  or  village  pastor  who  combines  in  himself 
organ,  choir,  and  precentor,  as  it  will  obviate  many  a 
most  mortifying  misapplication  of  a  common  meter  tune 
to  a  long  meter  hymn  and  other  like  mismating.  Even 
his  more  fortunate  fellow  pastor  who  does  not  lack  proper 
musical  support  in  his  regular  services  will  occasionally 
have  need  of  this  metrical  knowledge  in  his  devotional 
meetings. 

The  knowledge  of  the  various  meters  is  really  valuable 
to  all  ministers,  as  it  is  a  great  help  in  the  reading  of  the 
hymns.     Familiarity   with   the  meters   will   discover  at 


THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS  173 

once  the  rhythmical  swing  of  a  hymn  and  warn  against 
the  elocutionary  dangers  it  presents.  Some  hymn  writers 
follow  the  norm  of  a  given  meter  so  closely  that  it  re- 
quires caution  to  prevent  a  singsong  reading.  Such 
hymns  are  better  adapted  for  music  than  those  in  which 
greater  freedom  has  been  used  with  the  rhythm,  particu- 
larly with  the  pauses  in  the  midst  and  at  the  end  of  the 
line,  although  these  latter  hymns  are  more  easily  read 
with  effectiveness. 

These  different  meters  have  very  marked  character- 
istics. It  is  really  marvellous  how  the  instinct  of  the  true 
hymn  writers  of  the  Church  in  all  generations  has  uncon- 
sciously, or  at  least  subconsciously,  taken  account  of  them 
and  with  practical  unanimity  observed  them. 

The  long  meter  is  stately  and  dignified.  It  is  the  fit 
expression  of  noble  praise  like  the  Long  Meter  Doxology, 
11  Lord  of  all  being,  throned  afar,"  "  The  Lord  is  King; 
lift  up  thy  voice,"  "  From  all  that  dwell  below  the  skies," 
"  Before  Jehovah's  awful  throne,"  or  elevated  sentiment 
like  "  God  is  the  refuge  of  His  saints,"  "  When  I  survey 
the  wondrous  cross,"  "  'Tis  midnight,  and  on  Olive's 
brow,"  "  Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea."  Its  long,  even 
lines,  broken  by  no  strong  stops,  afford  a  smooth,  grace- 
ful expression  for  general  truths  and  Christian  doctrine 
in  poetic  form  such  as  "  O  Jesus,  our  chief  corner-stone," 
"  We  bid  Thee  welcome  in  the  name,"  "  Jesus  shall  reign 
where'er  the  sun,"  "  How  beauteous  were  the  marks  di- 
vine," "  O  Love  !  how  deep,  how  broad,  how  high ! " 

Occasionally  a  long  meter  hymn  has  the  caesura,  or 
pause,  almost  invariably  in  the  middle  of  the  line.  In 
reading  such  a  hymn  an  undue  emphasis  of  this  stop 
must  be  guarded  against  or  the  reading  will  become 
choppy,  or  fall  into  a  monotonous  singsong. 


174  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

M  Just  as  I  am, 

Without  one  plea, 
But  that  Thy  blood 

Was  shed  for  me  ; 
And  that  Thou  bidd'st 

Me  come  to  Thee, 

0  Lamb  of  God, 

1  come,  I  come  !  " 

would  not  make  very  effective  reading.  When  the  long 
meter  lines  rhyme  in  couplets,  there  is  danger  again  of 
monotonous  reading.  For  the  purpose  of  reading  aloud, 
a  long  meter  hymn  with  alternate  lines  rhyming,  and 
irregularly  recurring  caesuras  will  prove  easiest  and  most 
effective. 

The  common  meter  is  much  more  varied  in  its  pos- 
sibilities of  expression,  as  its  unequal  lines  and  alternate 
rhymes  give  greater  freedom.  It  is  the  prevailing  meter 
of  the  old  English  ballad.  It  is  really  the  most  adaptable 
and  pliable  form  of  stanza  open  to  the  hymn  writer,  giv- 
ing equal  opportunity  of  expression  to  all  emotions  and 
classes  of  truth.  It  is  a  fit  vehicle  alike  for  the  elevated 
praise  of  "  All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus'  name,"  the 
majesty  of  u  I  sing  the  almighty  power  of  God,"  the  doc- 
trinal statement  of  "  There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood," 
the  tenderness  of  "  Jesus,  the  very  thought  of  Thee,"  the 
vigour  of  "  Awake,  my  soul,  stretch  every  nerve,"  and 
the  quiet  resignation  of  "  Father,  whate'er  of  earthly 
bliss."  On  account  of  this  adaptability  it  has  become  the 
common  meter  in  fact  as  well  as  in  name. 

S.  M.  might  stand  for  Sententious  Meter  as  well  as 
Short  Meter,  as  the  two  short  lines  and  the  long  pauses 
at  the  end  of  each  of  them  gives  it  an  emphatic,  terse, 
even  epigrammatic  style.  This  may  be  seen  in  "  My 
soul,  be  on  thy  guard,"  "  Welcome,  sweet  day  of  rest," 


THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS  175 

"  Stand  up  and  bless  the  Lord,"  "  Crown  Him  with  many 
crowns,"  "  Come,  Holy  Spirit,  come."  John  Fawcett 
was  not  happy  in  the  selection  of  this  meter  for  his 
otherwise  very  useful  and  precious  hymn,  "  Blest  be  the 
tie  that  binds,"  as  the  strong  pause  at  the  end  of  the  first 
line  in  all  but  one  of  his  stanzas  cuts  his  sentences  in  two 
and  makes  it  alike  difficult  to  read  and  sing.  The  same 
difficulty  will  be  found  in  the  reading  of  other  hymns  in 
this  meter,  whose  limitations  have  not  always  been  rec- 
ognized by  writers  using  it.  It  would  be  a  very  slow, 
heavy  meter  did  not  the  longer  third  line  give  it  needed 
movement. 

The  meter  known  as  6s  lacks  the  longer  third  line  and 
is  therefore  peculiarly  grave  and  disjointed.  It  is  well 
adapted  for  hymns  of  passive  faith  or  resignation,  such  as 
"  My  Jesus,  as  Thou  wilt,"  "  Thy  way,  not  mine,  O 
Lord,"  or  for  dolorous  prayers  like  "  My  spirit  longs  for 
Thee,"  "  I  hunger  and  I  thirst."  The  hymn  "  There  is  a 
blessed  home  "  is  only  an  apparent  exception,  for  it  is  full 
of  "  woe,"  "  trials,"  "  sorrow,"  "  toil,"  and  other  sad 
phrases,  betraying  the  minor  key  of  the  poet's  song  of 
heaven. 

The  meter  6s  and  4s  in  its  various  forms  might  be  sup- 
posed to  be  even  slower  than  the  6s  because  of  the  addi- 
tional short  lines  of  four  syllables  each.  The  opposite  is 
true.  In  some  cases  the  first  four  lines  are  rhythmically 
equivalent  to  two  lines  of  ten  syllables  each,  so  slight  is 
the  pause  of  actual  thought  at  the  end  of  the  six  syllable 
line,  with  the  result  that  the  slowness  is  quickened  into 
simple  dignity  and  elevation.  But  even  where  the  pauses 
at  the  end  of  the  first  and  third  lines  are  long,  the  shorter 
second  and  fourth  lines,  as  in  common  meter,  give  added 
movement.     In  the  other  form  of  6s  and  4s  the  first  two 


176  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

six  syllable  lines  are  so  knit  together  by  their  common 
rhyme,  and,  if  properly  written,  have  so  markedly  a  com- 
mon goal  of  completeness  of  thought  in  the  third  line 
towards  which  they  hurry,  that  again  the  movement  is 
hastened  and  the  severity  of  the  6s  is  mitigated.  The 
same  principle  applies  to  the  following  three  or  four  lines, 
depending  on  the  form  examined.  Hence  we  have  in 
the  various  forms  of  this  meter  some  of  our  noblest 
hymns  of  prayer,  praise  and  victory,  such  as  "  Nearer,  my 
God,  to  Thee,"  "  More  love  to  Thee,  O  Christ,"  "  We  are 
but  strangers  here,"  "  Fade,  fade,  each  earthly  joy,"  "  My 
faith  looks  up  to  Thee,"  "  Rise,  glorious  Conqueror,  rise," 
"  Come,  Thou  Almighty  King,"  and  "  My  country,  'tis  of 
thee." 

But  space  fails  me  for  a  further  discussion  of  this  inter- 
esting phase  of  our  hymns.  The  principles  involved 
have  been  stated  clearly  enough  to  enable  those  who  are 
interested  to  carry  them  further. 

But  whatever  historical,  literary,  or  spiritual  insight  into 
the  hymns  he  uses  a  minister  may  have,  if  he  does  not 
know  how  to  secure  practical  results  from  them,  his 
knowledge  and  insight  are  useless.  He  needs  to  know 
not  only  the  general  line  of  thought  so  as  to  recognize  it 
as  a  hymn  of  praise,  of  comfort,  or  of  definite  exhorta- 
tion, but  also  its  minuter  adaptation  in  style,  thought, 
and  music  to  specific  emergencies.  Does  he  suddenly 
need  in  a  revival  meeting  a  hymn  of  invitation,  he  should 
instantly  be  able  to  call  up  a  dozen  or  more  and  select 
judiciously  the  very  one  that  fits  the  exact  mental  and 
spiritual  situation  at  that  moment.  But  this  cannot  be 
done  by  inspiration.  He  must  have  studied  the  effective 
value  of  each  hymn  with  a  view  to  the  results  that  may 
be  secured  from  it.     It  is  the  character  of  the  emotion 


THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS  177 

expressed  and  its  degree.  Some  hymns  attune  a  congre- 
gation to  a  tender  key,  others  are  martial  in  spirit, 
while  others  are  full  of  soothing  with  comfort  and  con- 
solation. Just  what  each  hymn  will  accomplish,  if 
properly  used,  and  under  what  conditions,  should  be  def- 
initely foreseen  and  its  use  clearly  understood. 

There  are  some  mental  and  spiritual  states  desirable  in 
a  congregation  which  must  be  secured  again  and  again. 
To  use  the  same  hymn  each  time  is  to  wear  out  its  in- 
fluence and  to  fail  in  securing  the  results.  He  must 
needs  know,  therefore,  just  what  hymns  of  varied  char- 
acter and  thought  will  produce  these  general  results. 
With  this  historical,  literary,  spiritual,  and  practical 
knowledge  of  a  hymn,  the  pastor  is  ready  for  its  use 
amid  the  infinitely  varied  emergencies  of  his  public  work. 

While  the  study  of  hymns  should  thus  be  general,  it 
should  go  on  to  a  more  specific  appropriation  of  the  hymns 
themselves.  The  mind  of  the  minister  should  be  charged 
and  surcharged  with  them.  He  ought  to  have  the  most 
striking  lines  of  even  obscure  hymns  ready  for  applica- 
tion in  the  midst  of  his  discourse.  This  quotation  of 
striking  and  effective  stanzas  of  hymns  is  a  great 
homiletical  enrichment,  and  will  add  dignity  and  impress- 
iveness  to  his  style.  Indeed  their  use  cannot  but  reflect 
upon  his  general  style.  No  man  can  read  in  a  sympa- 
thetic way  the  highest  spiritual  poetry  without  having  his 
own  style  take  more  or  less  consciously  a  devouter  and 
richer  form.  If  I  were  a  minister  in  God's  house,  I 
should  enrich  my  vocabulary,  elevate  my  literary  style, 
and  develop  my  devotional  gifts  by  frequently  reading 
aloud  not  only  the  hymnal  and  the  grand  old  English 
prayer-book,  but  even  the  often  magnificent  prayers  of 
Parker  as  found  in  his  "  The  People's  Bible." 


178  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

But  in  the  regular  work  of  the  church,  especially  in 
the  social  meetings,  a  memory  stored  with  hymns  is  of 
the  greatest  importance.  To  be  able  to  start  an  appro- 
priate hymn  just  as  the  proper  opportunity  arises,  and  to 
sing  as  much  or  as  little  of  the  hymn  as  the  occasion 
seems  to  require,  is  to  add  very  greatly  to  the  minister's 
practical  effectiveness.  Many  a  minister  has  defeated 
his  purpose  and  discredited  himself  before  his  people  by 
beginning  a  hymn  and  then  proving  unable  to  continue. 
From  the  subjective  and  the  objective  standpoint  alike, 
therefore,  the  minister's  mind  ought  to  be  generously 
stored  with  the  wealth  of  the  church's  treasury  of  hymns. 

Not  the  least  part  of  the  minister's  hymnological  pro- 
vision should  be  illustrative  matter  for  his  song  service. 
Just  as  he  has  a  general  body  of  doctrine  and  practical 
duty  to  illustrate  in  his  sermon  and  can  intelligently  ac- 
cumulate such  materials  for  them,  so  he  has  a  body  of 
hymns,  usually  much  less  than  what  his  hymnal  contains, 
round  which  his  illustrative  material  can  be  organized. 
The  illustration  may  be  historical,  biographical,  literary, 
Scriptural,  secular,  incidental,  or  anecdotal.  He  may  find 
it  in  his  reading  of  the  daily  papers  no  less  than  in  his 
books  of  hymnology,  on  the  streets  as  well  as  in  the 
study.  If  his  mind  is  full  of  hymns,  these  illustrations 
will  cluster  about  each  one  of  them  as  iron  filings  cluster 
about  a  magnet.  If  he  has  only  a  dozen  hymns  in  his 
mental  resources,  the  suggested  matter  will  be  limited  to 
them.  If  his  mental  hymnal  is  large  and  full,  he  will 
have  unlimited  illustration  offered  him  by  the  world  of 
reading  and  observation  about  him.  This  store  is  all  the 
larger  because  the  body  of  doctrine  he  preaches  and  the 
ideas  of  the  hymns  to  be  sung  are  in  general  the  same. 

Most  ministers  have  an  idea  that  a  hymn  illustration 


THE  STUDY  OF  HYMNS  179 

must  be  either  hymnological  or  musical  in  character; 
that  any  incident  related  to  enforce  a  hymn  must  have 
historical  relation  to  that  particular  hymn.  This  is  far 
from  necessary.  Any  illustration  emphasizing  or  emo- 
tionalizing the  doctrine  of  the  atonement  can  be  used  to 
impress  the  hymn,  "  Alas  and  did  my  Saviour  bleed." 
One  of  the  faults  of  the  average  minister  is  that  he  nar- 
rows down  his  song  service  illustration  by  such  false 
limits  of  his  own. 

Some  ministerial  minds  are  like  the  leaves  of  the  pitcher 
plant :  if  an  incident  once  falls  into  their  mental  pitcher, 
it  can  never  get  away.  But  these  illustrative  geniuses 
are  rare,  and  the  average  minister  will  do  well  to  make  a 
record  of  his  illustrations,  number  them  and  write  each 
number  in  his  personal  copy  of  his  church  hymnal  in 
connection  with  the  hymn  it  is  fitted  to  enforce.  A 
combined  scrap  and  commonplace  book  may  prove  use- 
ful, or  a  portfolio  scrap-book,  or  a  considerable  part  of  a 
cyclopedic  file,  such  as  are  now  widely  advertised  and 
used.  Whatever  the  place,  the  minister  in  turning  to  a 
hymn  should  be  able  to  command  all  the  materials  con- 
nected with  it.  He  ought  also  to  have  some  system  by 
which  he  can  keep  track  of  his  use  of  any  given  illustra- 
tion in  order  to  avoid  undue  repetition. 


V 

THE  SELECTION  OF  HYMNS 

NEXT  in  importance  to  the  minister's  selection 
of  his  text  comes  the  selection  of  his  hymns. 
If  he  has  a  clear  conception  of  the  unity  of  his 
service  it  will  appear  here  more  than  in  anything  else. 
If  he  is  a  narrow  man,  for  whom  a  broad  view  of  any 
situation  is  an  impossibility,  he  will  probably  have  the 
professional  narrowness  which  affects  some  people  like 
myopia.  Whatever  their  profession,  such  men  observe 
their  own  work  almost  exclusively,  and  if  they  see  any- 
thing else,  it  is  only  to  insist  upon  its  subordination  to 
their  own  interests. 

I  found  in  a  leading  religious  paper  some  time  ago  this 
fine  illustration  of  this  professional  myopia  :  "  The  music 
must  always  be  auxiliary  to  the  preaching.  It  must  serve 
to  promote  the  efficiency  of  the  sermon  in  every  possible 
way.  The  minister  should  select  the  hymns,  and  very 
carefully,  so  that  they  shall  impress  the  teaching  of  the 
sermon  and  lead  the  heart  to  God."  Nothing  could  be 
more  misleading  than  this  emphasis  of  the  sermon. 

The  sermon  is  simply  a  coordinate  part  of  divine  serv- 
ice, not  its  governing  feature  to  which  all  things  else 
must  be  subordinated.  The  hymns  should  not  be  se- 
lected with  reference  to  the  theme  of  the  sermon,  for  this 
will  lead  to  the  use  of  metrical  statements  of  abstract 
theology,  which  overload  most  of  our  larger  hymnals. 
Among  heathen  people  instruction  must  be  the  leading 

180 


THE  SELECTION  OF  HYMNS  181 

purpose  of  any  meeting  held  for  their  benefit ;  but  among 
Christian  people,  well  taught  in  the  essential  facts  and 
doctrines  of  the  Christian  faith,  the  chief  purpose  should 
be  worship,  to  which  the  sermon  should  be  simply  one  of 
several  aids.  The  hymns  should  be  emotional,  worship- 
ful, and  not  exclusively  didactic,  and  should  harmonize 
with  the  sermon  by  being  subordinated  with  the  sermon 
to  the  clearly-conceived  worshipful  purpose  of  the  entire 
service.  Dr.  Austin  Phelps,  a  half  century  ago,  enunci- 
ated a  better  policy  :  "  It  aims  at  unity  of  worship,  not 
by  sameness  of  theme,  but  by  resemblance  of  spirit.  It 
would  have  a  sermon  preceded  and  followed,  not  neces- 
sarily by  a  hymn  on  the  identical  subject,  but  by  a  hymn 
on  a  kindred  subject,  pertaining  to  the  same  group  of 
thought,  lying  in  the  same  perspective,  and  enkindling 
the  same  class  of  emotions.  It  would  select  the  songs  of 
the  sanctuary  with  the  same  play  of  adjustment  to  the 
themes  of  meditation,  which  a  skillful  Christian  chorister 
practices  in  adjusting  tunes  to  songs."  To  announce  the 
theme  of  the  coming  sermon  in  the  first  hymn,  to  read  a 
Scriptural  passage  as  a  basis  for  it,  to  grope  around  that 
theme  in  the  prayer,  to  emphasize  another  phase  in  the 
second  hymn,  is  a  case  of  professional  egotism  so  flagrant 
that  its  only  excuse  is  that  it  is  the  accepted  clerical  esti- 
mate of  the  situation. 

Now  every  service,  of  whatever  form  or  character,  is 
properly  intended  to  bring  the  soul  into  conscious  rela- 
tion with  God,  and  every  phase  of  the  soul's  activities 
is  to  be  brought  under  the  influence  of  this  dominating 
purpose.  As  it  cannot  comprehend  God  in  His  com- 
pleteness at  any  one  moment,  different  attributes  of  His 
nature,  and  the  varied  relation  of  these  several  attributes 
to  manifold  human  needs,  furnish  an  endless  abundance 


182  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

of  worshipful  themes  which  will  appeal  to  the  understand- 
ing through  the  truth,  to  the  heart  through  an  emotional 
realization  of  that  truth,  and  to  the  will  by  the  choices 
offered  to  the  soul's  supreme  tribunal.  Here,  then,  in 
this  clearly-conceived  phase  of  worshipful  attitude  you 
find  the  basis  for  the  logical  unity  of  the  service — a  liv- 
ing unity  that  moves  heart  and  will  as  well  as  reason, 
Beside  such  a  soul-compelling  unity,  the  frequently  arti- 
ficial theme  of  a  perfunctory  or  purely  intellectual  sermon 
cuts  a  pitiful  figure  as  the  all-embracing,  all*permeating 
life  of  a  service,  with  its  purely  mechanical  adaptations 
throttling  the  very  life  out  of  the  coordinate  elements  of 
the  service. 

There  is  in  this  no  fetter  to  the  intellectual  activity  of 
the  preacher,  but  rather  a  fresh  stimulus  and  source  of 
suggestion.  It  brings  to  bear  vital  forces  within  the 
speaker's  own  soul  that  too  often  find  little  exercise,  and 
changes  the  emotional  elements  of  the  service,  the  prayer, 
and  the  music, — now  too  often  mere  haphazard,  charac- 
terless excrescences, — into  definite  sources  of  power  for 
the  realization  of  the  desired  spiritual  results. 

A  preacher  whose  heart  is  a  barometer  of  the  spiritual 
condition  of  his  people  has  no  difficulty  in  finding  sub- 
jects and  texts  for  his  sermons.  The  man  who  must 
rummage  anxiously  through  his  Bible  for  some  suggest- 
ive text, — the  more  obscure  the  better,  as  it  will  give  an 
opportunity  for  novelty  and  freshness, — is  too  self-cen- 
tred intellectually  to  help  his  people  very  much.  If,  on 
the  contrary,  the  needs  of  his  people  press  upon  him, 
those  needs  furnish  an  arc-light  that  illuminates  the  Bible, 
and  a  suggestiveness  that  brings  him  an  embarrassment  of 
homiletical  riches.  Given  a  clear  recognition  of  a  definite 
immediate  need  and  the  consequent  definite  purpose,  and 


THE  SELECTION  OF  HYMNS  183 

it  will  not  only  make  sermonizing  easy,  but  will  control 
the  rest  of  the  service.  Not  the  theme  of  the  sermon, 
but  the  purpose  of  the  service  as  a  whole  will  be  the  or- 
ganizing vitality. 

Here  is  an  earnest  pastor  who  is  impressed  with  the 
growing  materialism,  or  worldliness,  of  his  people.  How 
shall  he  best  dredge  the  stagnant  shallows  of  their  souls  ? 
He  decides,  not  upon  a  single  sermon,  but  upon  a  series 
of  services  with  cumulative  power,  whose  whole  outlook 
shall  be  upon  the  Person  and  Character  of  God  as  the 
basis  of  his  claims  upon  his  creatures.  There  will  be 
sermons  upon  these  high  themes,  of  course,  but  they  will 
call  for  noble  and  elevated  coordinate  cooperation  in  the 
rest  of  the  service.  Now  these  sermons  should  all  be 
peculiarly  worshipful,  but  that  worship  will  be  set  to  dif- 
ferent keys.  The  sermon  on  the  Divine  Omnipotence 
calls  for  a  noble  enthusiasm.  The  hymns  should  be 
majestic  and  joyful.     I  should  not  approve  Watts'  hymn, 

"Let  all  the  earth  their  voices  raise 
To  sing  the  great  Jehovah's  praise 
And  bless  His  holy  name  " 

to  the  tune  "  Ariel "  for  the  first  hymn  in  spite  of  its  ap- 
propriateness of  thought,  first,  because  it  is  not  suffi- 
ciently elevated;  and  second,  because  the  tune  is  too 
light.     Watts'  more  majestic  hymn, 

"Before  Jehovah's  awful  throne, 
Ye  nations  bow  with  sacred  joy," 

sung  to  "  Old  Hundredth  "  would  be  more  harmonious 
with  the  general  purpose  of  the  service.  By  the  time  the 
second  hymn  is  reached  there  must  be  some  exhilaration 
of  spirit.     It  will  be  wise  therefore  to  select 


184  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

"All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell 
Sing  to  the  Lord  with  cheerful  voice ;  " 

first,  because  it  is  in  exactly  the  same  key  of  feeling  as 
the  previous  hymn ;  second,  because  for  that  reason  no 
tune  is  quite  so  fitting  to  it  as  "  Old  Hundredth  "  which  is 
already  provided  for  ;  and  third,  because  the  presumable 
intensifying  of  feeling  by  this  time  calls  for  a  brighter 
text  and  more  spirited  music.  But  it  must  be  a  hymn  of 
worship,  none  the  less  ;  we  choose,  therefore, 

"  Oh,  worship  the  King,  all  glorious  above; 
Oh,  gratefully  sing  His  pow'r  and  His  love," 

the  interrupted  dactylic  measure  and  triple  time  tune  giv- 
ing us  both  dignity  and  movement. 

If  the  prelude  was  a  joyfully  majestic  composition,  the 
anthem  one  of  elevated  praise — e.  g.y  a  "  Venite  "  or  a 
"  Jubilate," — the  responsive  reading  and  the  choir 
responses  reverent  and  worshipful,  the  long  prayer  of  the 
preacher  exalted  with  genuine  adoration,  forgetful  of  the 
routine  catalogue  of  petty  petitions,  and  the  Scripture 
passage  noble  with  inspiring  truth,  the  service  might  close 
at  this  point  as  having  already  realized  its  prime  object. 
There  must  have  been  something  radically  wrong  in  the 
spirit  and  management  of  it,  if  the  preacher  does  not  find 
his  people  responsive  and  himself  inspiringly  attuned  to 
his  noble  theme.  At  the  close  of  his  discourse  on  the 
Divine  Omnipotence,  his  people  will  presumably  be 
ready  to  sing 

"  Let  all  the  earth  their  voices  raise 
To  sing  the  great  Jehovah's  praise 
And  bless  His  holy  name" 

to  the  exhilarating  movement  of  the  tune  "  Ariel."     The 


THE  SELECTION  OF  HYMNS  185 

organist's  postlude  will  be  characterized  by  a  joyful 
solemnity,  some  strong  maestoso  movement. 

A  service  devoted  to  the  worship  of  God  as  manifested 
in  His  love  offers  a  wider  range  of  possibilities.  Is  it  the 
love  manifested  in  the  atonement,  there  may  be  the 
sombre  element  of  the  crucifixion  combined  with  the 
nobly  elevated  ;  is  it  the  love  manifested  to  His  children, 
there  will  be  a  chastened  ecstasy  in  the  hymns  and 
prayers  ;  is  it  the  love  that  consoles  and  comforts,  there 
will  be  the  tender  and  sympathetic  development  of  the 
theme — each  will  call  for  its  own  selection  of  hymns.  As 
the  latter  is  perhaps  the  most  difficult,  let  us  see  what 
program  we  should  prepare  for  it. 

The  organ  prelude  will  be  soft,  sweet  music,  full  of 
chromatic  chords  that  melt  one  into  the  other,  or  a 
tender,  emotional  melody  with  soft  accompaniment. 
The  usual  opening  doxology  will  give  way  to  an  introit, 
sung  very  gently  by  the  choir,  set  to  a  text  expressing 
divine  sympathy  or  a  prayer  for  help.  The  invocation 
will  be  a  plea  for  God's  manifest  presence  among  His 
needy  people.  The  first  hymn  sung  by  the  congrega- 
tion will  sustain  the  feeling  already  established, 

"  Lord,  we  come  before  Thee  now, 
At  Thy  feet  we  humbly  bow," 

sung  to  the  tune  "  Aletta  "  or  "  Pleyel's  Hymn."  The 
responsive  reading  may  be  the  Forty-second  and  Forty- 
third  Psalms.  The  choir,  having  been  advised  in  good 
time  what  was  desired,  sings  some  sympathetic  setting  of 
the  Twenty-third  Psalm,  or  of  the  Forty-second  Psalm,  or 
of  the  hymn,  "  Just  as  I  am."  If  the  preacher  has  kept 
step  in  his  heart  with  the  emotional  progress  of  his  serv- 
ice, the  long  prayer  will  be  an  expression  of  the  need  of 


186  PRACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

the  people  and  of  a  tender  appreciation  of  God's  loving 
sympathy,  closing  with  an  ascription  of  praise  to  His 
limitless  love.  The  people  ought  now  to  be  ready  to 
sing 

"  Love  divine,  all  loves  excelling, 
Joy  of  heaven  to  earth  come  down." 

After  the  discourse  a  hymn  in  direct  didactic  relation  to 
it  may  be  sung : 

"  God  is  love,  His  mercy  brightens 
All  the  path  in  which  we  rove." 

The  postlude  will  be  tenderly  joyous  and  sympathetic  in 
style. 

There  are  many  preachers  whose  nervous  organizations 
would  not  enable  them  to  adjust  themselves  to  so  tender 
an  emotional  key  in  developing  the  service.  They  would 
be  entirely  right  in  selecting  as  the  opening  hymn  one  of 
general  praise  and  worship : 

"  Come  Thou  Almighty  King, 
Help  us  Thy  name  to  sing, 
Help  us  to  praise," 

or  even  the  quietly  majestic  hymn, 

"  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  Almighty, 
Early  in  the  morning  our  song  shall  rise  to  Thee." 

The  second  hymn  may  be  more  prayerful  and  tender : 

"  Guide  me,  O  Thou  great  Jehovah, 
Pilgrim  through  this  barren  land," 


or 


When  all  Thy  mercies,  O  my  God, 
My  rising  soul  surveys. ' ' 


THE  SELECTION  OF  HYMNS  187 

The  final  hymn  may  be  more  didactic : 

"  God  is  the  refuge  of  His  saints, 
When  storms  of  sharp  distress  invade;  " 

or  the  more  stirring  and  forceful 

"  Give  to  the  winds  thy  fears, 
Hope,  and  be  undismayed ;  " 

or  that  wonderful  paean  of  faith  in  the  divine  love  and 
providence, 

"  How  firm  a  foundation,  ye  saints  of  the  Lord, 
Is  laid  for  your  faith  in  His  excellent  word." 

In  this  case  the  postlude  will  be  bright  and  joyous, 
preferably  with  some  soft  and  tender  episodical  passages. 

In  making  out  the  program  of  the  service,  it  is  impor- 
tant that  there  be  unity  of  feeling  rather  than  of  logic. 
This  gives  room  for  the  interest  the  unexpected  supplies. 
There  must  be  progress  of  feeling  as  well  as  of  thought. 
The  long  prayer  or  the  music  after  it,  be  it  organ  or  choir 
or  hymn,  should  be  the  climax  of  emotion.  It  should  be 
allowed  to  subside  a  little  during  the  announcements  and 
offering  in  order  to  rise  to  a  still  higher  climax  in  the 
sermon  and  closing  hymn. 

In  a  tender,  sympathetic  service  there  is  more  danger 
of  not  taking  the  audience  with  you.  If  the  music  and 
the  feelings  suggested  by  the  hymns  are  too  quiet  and 
depressing,  there  is  danger  of  its  acting  as  a  lullaby,  put- 
ting the  people  to  sleep.  Many  a  preacher  wonders  why 
some  of  his  hearers  are  asleep  before  his  text  is  fairly  an- 
nounced. In  nine  cases  out  of  ten  it  is  due  to  the  de- 
pressing character  of  the  music  used  in  the  devotional 
part  of  the  service. 


188  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

Of  course,  if  the  minister  proposes  to  preach  on  "  The 
Theology  of  Robert  Browning  "  or  "  The  Ethical  Import 
of  Upton  Sinclair,"  or  "  Gideon's  Hydrometer,"  or  "  Nim- 
rod,  the  Prehistoric  Hunter,"  he  can  turn  his  whole  serv- 
ice over  to  his  professional  musicians,  only  asking  that 
they  observe  the  ecclesiastical  conventionalities  and  sup- 
ply music  that  will  help  draw  an  audience.  The  sermon 
and  the  music  will  be  harmonious  inasmuch  as  they  are 
both  on  the  same  low  secular  plane. 


Part  III 
Congregational  Singing 


THE  VALUE  OF  CONGREGATIONAL  SINGING 

THE  ideal  form  of  church  music  after  all  is  con- 
gregational singing,  where  every  voice  is  lifted 
in  praise  and  thanksgiving,  in  prayer  and  pe- 
tition, in  inspiration  and  encouragement  and  in  earnest 
witness  for  divine  truth.  It  is  an  audible  representation 
of  the  communion  of  saints.  It  is  the  voice  of  the  Bride 
of  Christ  singing  His  glorious  perfections.  In  no  other 
exercise,  not  even  in  prayer,  is  there  such  communion, 
such  fellowship  of  feeling,  as  in  the  congregational  hymn 
when  all  are  singing.  It  is  not  strange  that  in  all  ages  of 
the  Church,  even  when  music  was  at  its  rudest,  it  should 
have  been  cultivated  and  encouraged.  When  the  song 
was  taken  from  the  congregation  and  given  to  choirs  of 
boys  and  monks,  it  was  both  a  symptom  of  the  decaying 
religious  life  and  an  additional  cause  for  its  future  and 
more  rapid  decay. 

The  German  Reformation  had  no  more  striking  mani- 
festation of  the  change  of  spirit  and  conception  of  the 
religious  life  than  in  the  restoration  of  the  congregational 
hymn.  And  among  the  common  people  it  was  not  so 
much  the  doctrine  preached,  not  so  much  a  sense  of  the 
imperfection  and  unworthiness  of  the  Roman  Church,  as 
the  congregational  hymn,  in  which  all  could  participate, 
that  swept  the  masses  into  the  fold  of  the  reformers.  In 
Germany  the  Reformation  was  a  singing  reformation,  and 
the  popular  results  were  very  largely  dependent  upon  its 
culture.     This  was  recognized  by  Luther's  enemies  who 

191 


192  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

said  that  he  did  more  harm  by  his  hymns  than  he  did  by 
his  sermons,  while  Coleridge  expresses  his  judgment  that 
"  Luther  did  as  much  for  the  Reformation  by  his  hymns 
as  by  his  translation  of  the  Bible." 

The  great  English  Reformation  under  the  Wesleys  was 
likewise  a  singing  reformation.  They  had  no  new  doc- 
trine to  preach,  for  the  Wesleys  were  doctrinally  not  far 
from  the  Anglican  Church  and  differed  from  it  only  in 
putting  spiritual  vitality  into  the  practical  Arminianism 
that  already  controlled  the  thought  of  England.  It  was 
the  spiritual  hymns  which  they  produced  and  which  were 
sung  from  one  end  of  Great  Britain  to  the  other  that  gave 
prominence  to  the  whole  movement.  It  is  but  just  to 
give  John  Wesley  the  preeminence  as  the  leader  of  the 
movement,  and  yet  Charles  Wesley  was  probably  not  far 
behind  his  more  intense  brother  in  the  practical  results 
of  his  work  and  influence. 

The  New  England  revival  in  which  Jonathan  Edwards 
bore  so  prominent  a  part  is  so  associated  in  our  minds 
with  his  severe  and  even  harsh  doctrinal  preaching  that 
it  comes  as  a  surprise  to  know  how  large  a  place  congre- 
gational singing  had  in  it.  I  quote  the  testimony  of 
Edwards  himself  to  its  value :  "  Our  public  praises  were 
then  greatly  enlivened.  God  was  then  served  in  our 
psalmody,  in  some  measure,  in  the  beauty  of  holiness.  It 
has  been  observable  that  there  has  been  scarce  any  part 
of  divine  worship  wherein  good  men  among  us  have  had 
grace  so  drawn  forth,  and  their  hearts  so  lifted  up  in  the 
ways  of  God,  as  in  singing  His  praises  ;  our  congregation 
excelled  all  that  I  ever  knew  in  the  external  part  of  the 
duty  before,  .  .  .  but  now  they  were  evidently  wont 
to  sing  with  unusual  elevation  of  heart  and  voice,  which 
made  the  duty  pleasant  indeed." 


VALUE  OF  CONGKEGATIONAL  SINGING     193 

The  revival  work  of  Moody  in  America  and  in  Great 
Britain  was  accompanied  by  such  musical  manifestations, 
by  such  unanimous  delight  in  the  songs  that  they  popular- 
ized, that  it  might  be  said  of  Sankey  as  it  was  of  Charles 
Wesley,  that  his  work  was  not  very  much  less  influential 
than  that  of  his  more  prominent  coadjutor.  Wherever 
there  is  spiritual  life  moving  among  the  general  people, 
there  is  the  popular  congregational  hymn.  Here  again, 
it  is  one  of  the  results  and  one  of  the  causes  as  well  of 
the  onward  sweep  of  the  religious  life. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  see  why  the  congregational  hymn 
should  have  such  value.  Any  one  who  has  listened  to  a 
congregation  that  fully  participated  in  the  song  cannot 
but  have  been  impressed  by  its  dignity  and  power.  It 
does  not  greatly  matter  what  the  music  is ;  the  most  shal- 
low ditty  when  taken  up  by  a  great  congregation  sud- 
denly rises  to  a  dignity  that  seemed  utterly  foreign  to  its 
character  before.  It  is  exalted  and  sublimated  not  only 
by  the  volume  of  the  sound  which  is  so  physically  thrill- 
ing, but  by  the  enthusiastic  and  hearty  and  sympathetic 
communion  of  the  great  assembly.  Hence  it  is  that  the 
very  shallow  and  artistically  vapid  "  Hold  the  Fort," 
when  sung  by  the  great  gatherings  under  Moody,  had 
such  overwhelming  impressiveness. 

The  fact  that  congregational  singing  brings  within  the 
active  plans  of  the  service  the  voice  and  heart  and  will  of 
every  worshipper  makes  it  practically  valuable  in  achiev- 
ing the  results  the  minister  desires.  When  by  the  exer- 
cise of  sheer  masterfulness,  by  persuasion,  or  by  interest- 
ing and  inspiring  the  congregation,  he  can  succeed  in 
securing  the  participation  in  the  singing  of  every  one 
present,  he  will  produce  the  conditions  in  the  attitude  of 
mind  and  will  on  the  part  of  the  hearers  which  make  sue- 


194  PKACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

cess  possible ;  such  a  responsiveness  is  established,  such  a 
knitting  of  the  sympathetic  natures  of  the  assembly,  such 
a  unifying  of  the  otherwise  indifferent  or  antagonistic  in- 
dividualities, that  the  minister  no  longer  has  a  mob  of  un- 
related personalities  to  deal  with  but  a  great  organism 
into  which  the  units  have  been  welded. 

Then  there  is  for  the  minister  himself  an  inspiration  in 
the  congregational  song  that  will  key  him  up  to  his 
highest  possibilities.  The  minister  who  can  stand  before 
a  great  congregation  and  listen  indifferently  to  its  united 
voice  hardly  has  a  place  in  the  pulpit.  While  the  song  is 
preparing  the  congregation  for  him,  it  is  also  preparing 
him  for  the  congregation.  His  own  spirit  and  concep- 
tion of  the  work  will  rise  to  the  magnitude  of  the  oppor- 
tunity before  him,  and  the  manifestation  of  the  diverse 
individualities  uniting  in  one  great  responsive  whole  spurs 
him  on  to  impress  this  composite  individuality  with  his 
message.  When  such  a  congregation  unites  in  praise  of 
the  Almighty,  the  spirit  of  the  minister  cannot  but  wake 
to  a  deeper  spiritual  apprehension  of  the  God  whose 
servant  he  is.  It  is  a  tangible  realization  of  the  sublime 
spectacle  of  heaven,  where  angels  and  archangels  and  the 
heavenly  hosts  respond  in  their  adoration  and  praise  to 
the  Almighty.  The  pettiness  and  shallowness  of  the 
minister's  self-consciousness  cannot  but  vanish,  and  the 
tremendous  responsibility  of  his  opportunity  must  be  im- 
pressed upon  him. 

But  there  are  higher  results  to  be  obtained  from  the 
congregational  song  than  the  mere  preparation  of  con- 
gregation and  minister  for  the  discourse.  There  should 
be  in  it  an  actual  communion  with  God,  and  a  stirring  of 
the  soul  that  will  give  aggressive  spiritual  power  over  the 
hearts  and  wills  of  the  unsaved.      It  has  often  seemed  to 


VALUE  OF  CONGREGATIONAL  SINGING     195 

me  that  no  other  devotional  exercise  of  assembled  saints 
can  be  so  pleasing  to  God  as  the  congregation  lifting  its 
united  voice  in  His  praise.  The  culminating  moments  in 
heaven's  worship  as  portrayed  in  the  Revelation  occur 
when  the  combined  voices  of  "  thousands  of  thousands  " 
of  angels  and  every  creature  which  is  in  heaven  and  on 
the  earth  and  under  the  earth  and  such  as  are  in  the  sea, 
and  all  that  are  in  them,  yea  the  great  multitude  which  no 
man  could  number,  sang  the  new  song  of  accomplished 
redemption. 

Furthermore,  true  congregational  singing  will  react 
upon  the  souls  of  the  individual  singers,  becoming  a  veri- 
table moment  of  transfiguration,  sharpening  their  spirit- 
ual apprehension,  stimulating  their  religious  feelings,  and 
leading  to  fresh  or  renewed  determination  of  loyalty  to 
God  and  His  laws.  Unless  each  feels  the  stimulus  of  the 
added  psychic  and  spiritual  momentum  of  all  the  rest 
urging  him  towards  a  fuller,  richer  religious  experience, 
this  union  of  voices  in  the  service  of  the  sanctuary  again 
becomes  a  useless  exercise  of  pulmonary  muscles. 

The  influence  of  really  successful  congregational  sing- 
ing is  exerted  also  upon  the  unsaved  persons  in  the  as- 
sembly. Even  in  the  realm  of  natural  psychic  law,  aside 
from  the  spiritual  and  divine  influences  that  are  above 
natural  law,  such  a  union  of  mind,  feeling,  and  will, 
sublimated  and  concentrated,  must  have  an  extraordinary 
influence  upon  outsiders.  I  have  had  in  my  experience 
some  instances  that  could  be  explained  only  in  this  way. 
I  remember  once  a  young  man  who  seemed  wonderfully 
convicted  in  an  intense  meeting  came  forward  to  the  altar 
and  seemed  brightly  converted.  Within  twenty-four 
hours  he  was  leading  in  a  low  dance  in  the  neighbour- 
hood, wilder  and  more  reckless  than  ever ;  was  it  not 


196  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

psychic  force  rather  than  the  Holy  Spirit's  power  that 
produced  these  temporary  results  ?  But  far  above  such 
elements  of  power,  heartfelt  congregational  singing  will 
bring  genuine  spiritual  forces  to  bear  upon  the  unsaved 
that  will  bring  them  at  least  vague  apprehensions  of 
desirable  spiritual  things  and  generate  in  them  genuinely 
religious  impulses  that  lead  them  to  God. 

Unless  a  hymn  shall  manifest  at  least  two  if  not  all  of 
these  lines  of  power,  success  has  been  missed,  no  matter 
how  artistic  the  music,  or  how  general  the  participation. 
But  how  many  of  the  hymns  sung  in  our  public  services 
would  bear  having  these  tests  applied  ? 

It  is  not  only  necessary  that  the  minister  himself  have 
an  adequate  idea  of  the  value  of  good  congregational 
singing.  He  should  pass  that  appreciation  on  to  his 
people.  He  must  impress  them  that  participation  is  a 
duty, — one  that  is  urged  in  the  Bible  quite  as  much  as 
prayer.  To  be  songless  is  as  bad  as  to  be  prayerless. 
Both  rob  God  of  a  recognition  due  Him  for  what  He  is  in 
Himself  and  what  He  is  to  us. 

There  is  nothing  like  example  in  urging  a  duty.  The 
preacher  who  sings  himself  will  lead  his  people  to  sing. 
If  he  studies  his  sermon  notes  or  runs  over  his  announce- 
ments or  looks  over  the  congregation,  his  real  estimate 
of  the  value  of  the  exercise  is  too  evident  to  be  disguised. 

Wesley  insisted  that  his  preachers  should  preach  upon 
the  privilege  and  duty  of  congregational  singing  from 
time  to  time.  I  know  of  no  better  introduction  to  a  re- 
form in  congregational  singing  than  an  earnest  discourse 
that  will  not  only  declare  the  duty,  but  give  the  reasons 
for  it,  and  the  spirit  and  the  way  in  which  it  should  be 
performed.  The  minister  should  urge  it  privately  as 
well  as  publicly,  by  passing  allusion  and  occasional  com- 


VALUE  OF  CONGREGATIONAL  SINGING     197 

ment,  as  well  as  by  formal  discourse.  This  is  all  the 
more  necessary  that  the  development  of  the  critical  at- 
titude among  cultivated  people  is  leading  them  to  under- 
rate their  vocal  powers  and  their  pride  prompts  them 
to  refrain  from  public  singing. 


II 

THE  ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  HYMNS 

IF  it  is  worth  while  for  a  theological  student  to  study 
the  effective  delivery  of  sermons,  it  would  seem  al- 
most equally  worth  his  while  to  study  the  actual  use 
of  hymns  in  public  service.  It  is  generally  assumed  that 
any  one  can  announce  a  hymn  and  arrange  for  its  sing- 
ing, and  the  result  is  that  probably  the  least  successful 
work  of  ninety-nine  out  of  a  hundred  ministers  is  their 
preparation  for  the  song  service  of  the  church.  I  well 
remember  one  minister  who  would  baldly  announce  the 
number  and  then  turn  round  and  stand  looking  at  the 
choir  and  organist  until  they  were  prepared  to  sing  the 
tune.  The  awkwardness  and  helplessness  of  the  man  in- 
variably produced  a  most  unfortunate  effect  upon  the 
congregation.  Another  minister  I  knew  announced  the 
number  and  read  the  first  line.  It  made  no  difference 
whether  the  first  line  made  sense  or  not,  he  never  read 
any  further.  It  was  his  mechanical  and  invariable  form, 
and  it  never  occurred  to  him  that  there  was  anything  else 
to  be  done.  The  hymn  was  perfunctorily  used  by  him 
as  a  traditionally  necessary  part  of  the  service  with  which 
he  had  little  or  nothing  to  do,  and  which  had  no  relation 
to  the  needs  or  objects  he  had  in  view  for  that  service. 
It  may  be  that  he  and  a  great  many  others  like  him  look 
upon  the  whole  musical  service  as  a  merely  formal  ad- 
junct without  any  spiritual  object  or  aim.  The  unpar- 
donableness  of  an  aimless  sermon  need  not  be  empha- 

198 


THE  ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  HYMNS         199 

sized,  but  why  should  it  be  easier  to  forgive  a  pastor  for 
being  aimless  in  his  use  of  hymns  ? 

At  this  point  let  me  drop  a  word  of  warning  against 
the  unintelligent  omission  of  verses.  Some  ministers  in- 
variably restrict  the  number  to  be  sung  to  three  or  four. 
If  there  are  five  verses,  they  invariably  omit  the  fourth, 
or  invariably  announce,  "  We  will  sing  the  first  three 
verses,"  no  matter  what  the  development  of  thought  may 
be.  One  of  the  most  painful  manifestations  of  ministerial 
thoughtlessness  and  indifference  to  the  congregation's 
share  of  the  service  is  this  brutal  mutilation  of  the  hymns. 

A  great  many  people  deprecate  the  minister's  reading 
of  the  hymns.  They  think  that  it  is  so  much  time  lost, 
and  that  it  keeps  them  from  their  Sunday  dinner  by  just 
so  many  minutes  as  the  reading  requires  ;  but  that  is  be- 
cause so  few  ministers  are  able  to  read  hymns  with  any 
degree  of  impressiveness  or  reality.  Perhaps  half  the 
ministers  who  read  them  leave  no  desirable  impression 
whatever  as  the  result,  for  the  reading  has  been  without 
even  a  thoughtful  sense  of  the  meaning  of  the  hymn, 
much  less  of  its  emotional  force.  To  allow  one's  voice 
to  fall  at  the  end  of  every  line,  or  to  make  a  habit  of  hav- 
ing a  rising  inflection  at  the  end  of  each  first  line  and  a 
falling  at  the  end  of  each  second,  without  variation,  is  so 
vile  from  an  elocutionary  standpoint  that  one  cannot 
wonder  that  the  general  congregation  prefers  its  omission. 

On  the  other  hand,  if  the  minister's  mind  and  heart  are 
profoundly  awake  to  the  thought  and  feeling  of  the  hymn 
that  is  to  be  used,  if  the  minister  has  a  definite  purpose 
which  he  wishes  to  realize  through  the  singing  of  that 
hymn,  if  the  whole  song  service  is  thoroughly  vital  and 
earnest,  he  cannot  help  but  read  the  hymn  in  such  a  way 
as  to  impress  and  interest  his  people.     One  need  not  be 


200  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

a  well  trained  elocutionist  to  do  this.  The  genuine  feel- 
ing will  develop  a  natural  elocution  and  will  even  neu- 
tralize faulty  habits  and  mannerisms  of  reading  that  would 
otherwise  make  it  unendurable. 

The  fact  that  the  hymn  is  a  familiar  one  may  be  only 
an  additional  reason  for  reading  it  instead  of  being,  as  is 
usually  supposed,  an  imperative  reason  for  omitting  its 
reading.  As  coins  long  in  circulation  often  lose  their 
superscription,  these  familiar  words  often  lose  their  mean- 
ing and  reality  by  constant  use,  and  these  may  be  re- 
stored by  intelligent  and  emotional  reading.  I  would 
not  advise  a  mere  habit  of  reading  a  hymn  through.  The 
situation,  the  purpose  in  view,  the  character  of  the  service 
and  the  time  allotted  to  it,  even  the  preacher's  own  pass- 
ing mood,  all  are  factors  that  need  to  be  considered. 

As  already  suggested,  the  chief  weakness  in  our  song 
service  is  in  its  perfunctoriness.  Like  counterfeit  money 
in  the  contribution  box,  there  is  no  genuineness  in  it. 
People  sing  the  most  devout  and  spiritual  hymns  with 
absolute  indifference,  with  apparently  no  sense  of  their 
meaning,  and  certainly  with  no  appropriation  to  them- 
selves of  the  experiences  expressed.  What  is  needed  to 
make  our  song  service  what  it  ought  to  be,  is  the  revital- 
ization  of  these  hymns.  In  announcing  his  hymns 
Spurgeon  generally  made  some  remark  :  "  This  hymn  is 
full  of  joy,  let's  sing  it  with  all  our  hearts."  "  Dear 
friends,  the  devil  sometimes  makes  you  lag  half  a  note 
behind  the  leader.  Just  try  if  you  can't  prevail  over  him 
to-night  and  keep  proper  time."  One  of  Wesley's  rules 
regarding  singing  was  "  Often  stop  short  when  the  words 
are  given  out  and  ask  the  people  '  Now  do  you  know 
what  you  said  last  ?  Did  you  speak  no  more  than  you 
felt?'" 


THE  ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  HYMNS         201 

Instead  of  reading  the  whole  hymn  at  the  beginning, 
there  may  be  a  reading  of  each  stanza  as  it  is  sung,  if  the 
thought  of  the  hymn  will  bear  such  separation  of  its 
parts.  In  connection  with  the  original  reading  of  the 
hymn,  or  with  the  reading  of  the  separate  stanzas,  there 
may  be  interesting  comment  or  development  of  the  idea 
expressed.  It  may  be  wise  to  emphasize  and  impress 
upon  the  congregation  the  thoughts  to  which  they  give 
musical  utterance  and  so  awake  the  very  emotions  these 
hymns  are  intended  to  express. 

Again  there  may  be  a  statement  of  the  historical  con- 
nections of  the  hymn  to  be  sung,  a  few  words  regarding 
the  author  or  the  circumstances  under  which  it  was  written, 
or  its  relation  to  the  church  life  at  the  time  when  it  was 
written.  The  results  that  have  been  achieved  through 
the  singing  of  this  particular  hymn  may  be  brought  out 
in  an  interesting  and  forceful  way.  Incidents  connected 
with  the  hymn,  either  as  regards  its  results  in  the  lives  of 
others,  or  an  incident  that  will  properly  illustrate  its 
meaning  will  be  found  very  helpful.  Indeed  there  is  no 
better  way  in  which  a  congregation  may  be  brought 
into  tune  with  a  hymn  which  they  are  all  about  to  make 
the  expression  of  their  feeling  than  by  arousing  that  feel- 
ing by  the  use  of  appropriate  and  effective  emotional 
anecdotes. 

In  making  these  comments  on  the  hymn  it  is  not 
simply  a  matter  of  creating  a  general  interest,  historical 
or  literary,  but  of  reproducing  the  emotional  and  spirit- 
ual atmosphere  of  the  verses  to  be  sung,  and,  if  that  is  not 
done,  the  comment  is  a  failure  no  matter  how  brilliant, 
scholarly,  or  entertaining  it  may  be. 

One  point  must  be  guarded  :  the  beauty  and  effective- 
ness of  its  music  must  never  be  allowed  to  obscure  the 


202  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

literary,  and  more  especially  the  spiritual  values  of  a 
hymn.  The  more  popular  a  sacred  song  becomes  the 
more  likely  are  its  words  to  lose  their  weight  and  the 
more  need  is  there  of  emphasizing  their  sentiment.  I 
wonder  how  many  of  the  millions  of  people  round  the 
world  who  have  been  singing  Gabriel's  "  Oh,  That  Will 
be  Glory  "  have  ever  had  any  real  sense  of  the  meaning 
of  the  words.  They  are  so  far  above  the  reach  of  the 
average  Christian  experience  as  to  be  almost  inaccessible, 
and  yet  multiplied  thousands  in  a  single  meeting  have 
joined  in  the  song.  If  instead  of  a  mechanical  exhortation 
to  sing  out,  the  leader  should  read  that  wonderful  passage 
in  Paul's  letter  to  the  Ephesians,  where  he  describes 
how  God  raised  Christ  from  the  dead,  "  and  set  Him  at 
His  own  right  hand  in  the  heavenly  places,  far  above  all 
principality,  and  power,  and  might,  and  dominion,  and 
every  name  that  is  named,  not  only  in  this  world,  but  also 
in  that  which  is  to  come ;  and  hath  put  all  things  under 
His  feet,  and  gave  Him  to  be  the  head  over  all  things  to 
the  Church,  which  is  His  body,  the  fullness  of  Him  that 
filleth  all  in  all,"  there  would  be  something  more  tangible 
to  that  "  Glory  "  of  which  they  sing  so  thoughtlessly  and 
even  flippantly. 

The  very  fact  that  the  people  are  prone  to  sing  per- 
functorily and  mechanically  the  most  exalted  thoughts 
and  the  noblest  words  that  have  ever  flowed  from  an  un- 
inspired pen,  only  makes  the  duty  laid  upon  the  minister 
to  prevent  such  insincerity  and  irreverence  in  the  house 
of  God  more  positive  and  imperative.  Let  me  say  in  the 
most  emphatic  manner  possible,  that  if  the  people  lie  to 
God  by  singing  praise  they  do  not  feel,  or  by  bringing 
petitions  they  do  not  desire,  if  they  hypocritically  ex- 
press consecrations  they  do  not  intend,  or  emotions  they 


THE  ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  HYMNS         203 

do  not  feel,  if  they  address  useless  exhortations  to  their 
fellows  that  are  insincere  and  that  they  themselves  have 
no  thought  of  carrying  out,  it  is  all  the  minister's  fault. 
It  is  not  wanton  prevarication  and  hypocrisy,  but  mere 
courtesy  to  the  leader  of  the  service  who  asks  them  to 
perpetrate  these  monstrous  falsities.  The  responsibility 
must  be  his,  not  theirs,  for  the  divine  displeasure  that 
must  rest  upon  such  a  farcical  and  even  blasphemous  per- 
formance. 

In  some  of  the  Protestant  church  services  I  have  at- 
tended here  in  America,  I  have  had  the  same  feeling  of 
indignant  protest  against  careless  and  irreverent  handling 
of  infinitely  holy  things  that  rose  in  me  when  I  saw  a 
priest  baptizing  little  children  in  the  Baptistry  at  Florence, 
Italy.  According  to  his  faith,  he  was  initiating  the  souls 
of  the  children  brought  to  him  into  the  kingdom  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  conferring  upon  them  the  gift  of 
blessed  immortality  ;  but  as  he  mumbled  the  formula  of 
baptism  his  gross  eyes  wandered  over  the  tourists  as  they 
came  and  went  with  curious  and  evil  glances  that  showed 
how  far  his  mind  and  heart  were  from  the  solemn  mystery 
he  was  performing.  Worship  is  no  less  holy  than 
baptism,  and  a  Protestant  minister  may  be  as  irreverent 
and  unworthy  as  was  that  Florentine  priest. 


Ill 

THE  SELECTION  OF  TUNES 

THERE  is  perhaps  no  greater  blunder  made  by 
the  average  minister  than  his  ignorance  of  or 
his  indifference  towards  the  tune  to  which  the 
hymn  he  has  selected  shall  be  sung.  He  is  thinking 
only  of  the  hymn  and  its  relation  to  his  subject,  and  he 
selects  two  hymns  on  the  same  page  in  the  same  meter. 
The  result  is  the  precentor  or  choir  leader  must  find 
another  tune,  for  it  would  be  a  rare  leader  who  would 
consent  to  the  using  of  the  same  tune  twice  in  the  same 
service. 

While  the  average  hymnal  has  a  large  variety  of  tunes 
and  the  average  mating  gift  of  the  hymn-book  compiler 
may  be  ordinarily  trusted,  there  are  emergencies  in  the 
life  of  the  church  which  no  hymn-book  compiler  can 
possibly  foresee.  He  has  troubles  of  his  own  in  rinding  a 
large  variety  of  tunes  for  the  number  of  hymns  his  col- 
lection contains.  To  repeat  a  given  tune  indefinitely 
does  not  seem  wise.  Hence  he  may  decide  to  put  a 
tune  to  the  given  hymn  that  is  not  usually  sung  with  it, 
simply  because  he  has  used  the  tune  generally  sung  with 
it  elsewhere  so  often  that  he  feels  compelled  to  select 
something  less  well  known.  In  such  a  case  as  that  the 
minister  must  use  his  discretion  and  ask  his  precentor  or 
choir  leader  to  sing  the  more  satisfactory  music. 

The  question  is  still  further  complicated  by  the  fact 
that  many  of  our  hymnal  compilers  consult  their  artistic 

204 


THE  SELECTION  OF  TUNES  205 

pride  rather  than  their  practical  sense.  In  many  of  our 
more  ambitious  hymnals  the  majority  of  the  tunes  have 
been  transferred  from  "  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern," 
the  popular  hymnal  of  the  Established  Church  of  Eng- 
land, not  because  they  are  adapted  to  American  needs, 
not  because  they  can  be  sung  in  the  average  congrega- 
tion, but  because  the  high  standing  in  England  of  this 
very  excellent  collection  of  hymn  tunes  for  English 
Church  use  so  impresses  the  hymn-book  compiler  that 
he  feels  under  a  sort  of  moral  compulsion  to  supply 
American  congregations  with  the  music  that  has  been 
so  widely  accepted  in  Great  Britain.  I  need  hardly  say 
that  when  a  hymn  is  selected  that  is  wedded  to  such  a 
tune  from  foreign  sources,  the  minister  must  decide 
whether  he  shall  accept  the  judgment  of  the  hymnal 
editor,  using  the  tune  provided,  and  seeing  his  congre- 
gation stumble  and  blunder  and  fail,  or  whether  he  shall 
rise  above  the  judgment  of  the  compiler  and  select  a  tune 
for  the  hymn  in  question  which  the  congregation  can 
sing  with  general  participation  and  spontaneity. 

As  I  have  elsewhere  insisted,  I  have  no  quarrel  with 
the  English  hymn  tune.  Many  specimens  of  it  are  mag- 
nificent music.  But  to  accept  an  English  tune  simply 
because  it  is  English,  because  it  bears  the  name  of  some 
prominent  English  composer,  or  because  it  belongs  to  a 
style  that  is  recognized  as  churchly  and  dignified,  is 
to  throw  aside  all  critical  discrimination  and  to  invite 
defeat  in  the  practical  work  of  congregational  singing. 

In  many  a  congregation  these  English  tunes  are  used 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  congregational  singing  has  be- 
come a  mere  form  as  a  result  of  this  theoretical  and 
impracticable  selection.  In  some  cases  hired  singers  are 
scattered  through  the  congregation  in  order  to  keep  up 


206  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

the  semblance  of  congregational  singing.  There  is  a 
general  outcry  that  congregational  singing  is  falling  into 
desuetude  and  the  fault  for  such  decadence  is  placed 
upon  the  public  schools,  upon  the  lack  of  interest  in  the 
congregation,  everywhere  but  where  it  belongs,  the  im- 
practicable selection  of  foreign  tunes  in  the  hymnal  in 
use.  Nor  is  this  result  confined  to  America.  In  a 
recent  address  Dr.  Curwen  publicly  stated  that  the  Estab- 
lished Church  had  lost  its  congregational  singing.  During 
a  visit  to  this  country,  Dr.  Samuel  Chadwick  of  Leeds 
later  gave  a  similar  testimony. 

In  the  selection  of  tunes  it  ought  to  be  constantly  kept 
in  mind  that  you  have  the  average  singer  to  provide  for. 
To  allow  a  general  congregation  to  attempt  the  singing 
of  "  I  hear  the  voice  of  Jesus  say,"  to  Dykes'  "  Vox 
Dilecti,"  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  was  originally  written 
for  choir  use,  and  that  no  ordinary  congregation  can 
possibly  hope  to  sing  its  accidentals  in  an  endurable 
way,  is  to  ruin  a  beautiful  tune,  to  absolutely  defeat  the 
purpose  of  the  singing  of  the  hymn,  and  to  discourage 
the  average  singer  in  the  congregation  from  ever  at- 
tempting to  sing  anything  in  the  future  he  does  not 
thoroughly  well  know. 

Dr.  Binney  of  London  whose  pamphlet  on  "  The  Serv- 
ice of  Song  in  the  House  of  the  Lord  "  has  been  widely 
recognized  as  one  of  the  ablest  discussions  on  this  sub- 
ject says,  "  If  indeed  it  be  the  duty  of  the  congregation 
to  sing,  it  must  be  its  right  to  be  furnished  with  such 
music  as  it  can  sing  ! "  As  I  have  already  elaborated  in 
a  preceding  chapter,  a  tune  should  be  simple,  should  be 
tuneful,  should  be  within  the  compass  of  the  average 
singer's  voice,  should  present  no  startling  intervals  diffi- 
cult for  a  great  assembly  to  sing  correctly  and  smoothly, 


THE  SELECTION  OF  TUNES  207 

and  above  all  should  be  native  to  the  musical  thought 
and  impulse  of  the  people  who  are  to  use  it. 

Where  the  exigencies  of  the  service  permit,  it  will 
be  well  to  give  the  people  an  opportunity  to  sing  their 
favourites.  Why  one  tune  is  more  attractive  than  another, 
who  can  say  ?  The  fact  remains  that  two  tunes  of  equal 
harmonic  strength,  of  equal  freshness  of  theme,  will  be 
like  the  two  women  at  the  mill,  one  will  be  saved  for 
general  helpfulness  and  delight,  while  the  other  will  be 
passed  by  as  unworthy  of  use.  These  more  popular 
tunes  ought,  therefore,  to  be  given  an  opportunity  to 
accomplish  the  results  they  are  somehow  fitted  to  realize. 
How  to  draw  the  line  between  utilizing  such  a  tune  to  its 
full  extent  and  by  excessive  use  wearing  out  its  power 
and  producing  a  reaction  in  the  minds  of  the  congre- 
gation, every  minister  must  work  out  for  himself  by 
experiment. 

It  will  be  difficult  to  have  general  participation  in  song, 
if  the  congregation  have  no  opportunity  for  learning  the 
practical  tunes  in  the  hymnal.  Such  opportunities  should 
be  made  either  in  a  regular  rehearsal,  if  an  attendance 
can  be  secured  for  such  a  meeting,  by  using  the  freer 
evening  service  for  introducing  new  hymns  and  tunes  in 
an  intelligent  and  interesting  way,  or  by  asking  those 
interested  in  singing  to  remain  after  a  regular  service  for 
a  half  hour's  practice  or  informal  song  service.  A  strong 
chorus  choir,  which  has  been  properly  drilled  in  the  sing- 
ing of  the  desirable  tunes  in  the  hymnal,  is  the  real  key 
to  the  situation.  With  their  help  any  tune,  no  matter 
how  new,  can  be  introduced  and  speedily  taught  to  the 
general  congregation.  Where  congregations  are  con- 
stantly adding  to  their  stock  of  well-known  tunes,  there 
will  be  a  freshness  and  an  interest  that  cannot  possibly 


208  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

be  had   where  the  same  old  tunes  are  sung  from  one 
year's  end  to  the  other. 

I  hardly  need  to  say  that  for  general  participation  it  is 
important  that  there  should  be  plenty  of  hymnals  in  the 
pew  racks.  A  minister  who  is  careless  as  to  the  condi- 
tion of  the  hymnals  in  the  pews,  as  to  their  number  or 
condition  of  serviceability  after  use,  is  like  a  general  who 
is  without  care  for  the  ammunition  boxes  of  his  soldiers. 
A  good  hymnal,  not  too  heavy  and  cumbersome,  plenti- 
fully distributed  throughout  the  congregation,  will  be  a 
very  great  help  in  inducing  the  people  to  take  part. 


IV 

LEADERSHIP  IN  SINGING 

WHAT  has  been  said  of  the  importance  of  gen- 
eral participation  in  congregational  singing 
leads  to  the  practical  consideration  of  the  best 
methods  of  securing  it.  Here  at  once  the  question  of 
leadership  confronts  us.  In  many  churches  it  is  solved 
by  having  a  general  precentor.  Much  may  be  said  in 
favour  of  such  a  leader. 

Of  course,  in  small  congregations,  or  where  the  musical 
resources  are  limited,  it  may  be  that  the  minister  himself 
will  prove  to  be  the  very  best  precentor  that  can  be  se- 
cured, even  though  he  be  not  officially  recognized  as 
such.  Under  such  conditions  the  musical  minister  shines 
out  most  brilliantly  and  effectively,  combining  the  devo- 
tional, the  didactic  and  the  musical  leadership  ;  he  can 
give  a  unity  of  spirit  to  his  services  that  is  frequently 
missed  where  the  responsibility  is  divided.  His  leader- 
ship will  react  upon  the  other  phases  of  his  work  and  he 
will  have  greater  power  as  a  preacher  and  as  a  leader  of 
the  devotions.  But  such  a  union  of  offices  is  very  ex- 
hausting, and  it  is  not  every  minister  who  can  bear  the 
strain.  In  proportion  as  the  work  of  the  service  is  elab- 
orate and  taxing,  the  union  of  all  these  offices  in  the 
minister  will  become  less  and  less  possible. 

It  will,  therefore,  be  important  to  secure  some  one  who 
shall  confine  himself  to  this  phase  of  the  work.  The 
ideal  precentor  is  not  easily  found.     He  ought  to  be  a 

209 


210  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

man  of  good  presence,  of  attractive  manners,  and  of  easy 
carriage  before  the  public.  He  should  be  somewhat  of  a 
general,  with  a  masterful  element  in  his  composition, 
with  a  quick  responsiveness  to  the  moods  of  the  congre- 
gation, and  a  keen  insight  into  the  different  conditions. 
The  iron  hand,  however,  ought  to  be  well  clothed  in  vel- 
vet, for  mere  masterfulness jdoes  not  harmonize  well  with 
spiritual  work. 

Need  I  say  that  he  ought  to  be  a  good  man,  with  the 
respect  and  confidence  of  the  community  ?  If  he  is  to 
accomplish  the  results  that  ought  to  be  realized,  he  must 
needs  be  much  more — a  thoroughly  devout  and  spiritual 
man.  The  people  will  not  likely  go  further  than  they 
are  led.  If  the  precentor  is  a  mere  singing  school  mas- 
ter, teaching  them  the  tunes  and  insisting  on  their  sing- 
ing them  from  a  purely  musical  standpoint,  there  will  be 
very  little  devoutness  or  spirituality  in  the  service. 

Perhaps  you  have  noticed  that  I  have  said  nothing  re- 
garding the  precentor's  voice.  Usually  that  is  supposed 
to  be  the  most  important  part  of  the  precentor's  outfit ; 
but,  really,  a  very  moderate  voice  in  strength  and  attract- 
iveness will  be  much  more  desirable  combined  with  the 
qualities  already  noted  than  a  phenomenal  voice  without 
them.  It  is  the  masterful,  spiritual,  devout,  inspiring 
element  that  counts  in  the  precentor  rather  than  the  mere 
quality  of  his  voice. 

The  art  of  leading  congregational  singing  is  not  so 
easy  as  some  people  imagine.  It  is  something  more  than 
to  simply  stand  before  a  congregation  and  sing  the  tune. 
The  proper  relations  must  be  established  between  the 
leader  and  the  congregation  before  the  best  results  can 
be  reached.  The  instinct  for  organization  in  an  assembly 
of  people  is  a  mighty  one.     If  the  proper  leader  appears, 


LEADEKSHIP  IN  SINGING  211 

they  rally  about  him  with  gladness  and  sing  with  enthu- 
siasm ;  if  the  leader  appointed  is  a  failure,  they  become 
demoralized.  Once  the  congregation  feels  that  the  leader 
is  himself  uncertain  as  to  the  tune,  that  he  has  no  definite 
conception  of  its  spirit,  rhythm,  or  tempo,  that  he  has  not 
that  masterfulness  which  compels  their  cheerful  obedi- 
ence, the  best  results  are  already  impossible.  If,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  leader  by  his  known  character  and  abil- 
ity, or  by  his  manner  and  spirit  before  the  congregation, 
has  won  the  confidence  and  good-will  of  the  people,  so 
that  they  will  cheerfully  yield  to  his  direction,  the  battle 
is  half  won.  To  establish  this  relation,  the  precentor 
must  have  resolution  and  courage.  He  must  have  his 
work  well  in  hand,  know  exactly  what  he  wishes  to  ac- 
complish and  how  to  accomplish  it.  He  must  have  the 
magnetism  that  attracts  and  controls. 

In  their  effort  to  impress  a  congregation,  many  pre- 
centors are  altogether  too  demonstrative  and  "  fussy." 
They  beat  the  air,  roar  with  stentorian  voices,  make 
grimaces  that  are  awful  to  behold,  and  instead  of  im- 
pressing the  congregation  with  their  power,  suggest  that 
they  are  making  exceedingly  hard  work  of  their  duty. 
Nothing  could  be  wider  of  the  mark  than  such  excessive 
demonstration,  even  if  we  do  not  take  account  of  the 
distraction  from  devotion  their  manner  creates.  Others, 
on  the  contrary,  are  so  exceedingly  sedate  in  their  man- 
ner that  they  make  an  impression  of  something  wooden 
and  mechanical,  spirit  and  enthusiasm  being  entirely  ab- 
sent. The  golden  mean  of  calm  energy  and  self-re- 
strained enthusiasm  and  spirit  is  to  be  sought,  for  there 
is  no  power  which  so  completely  compels  others  as  the 
evident  power  to  control  one's  self. 

Leadership  by  a  successful  precentor  is  the  primary 


212  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

and  ideal  one  in  the  service  of  song.  But  where  such  a 
precentor  cannot  be  found,  it  may  be  well  to  have  the 
singing  led  by  a  quartet  or  by  a  chorus  choir.  Should 
the  precentor  have  such  a  choir  at  his  command,  it  will 
add  to  the  possibilities  of  his  work.  But  without  the 
precentor,  a  choir  may  be  extremely  useful  in  leading  the 
congregational  singing.  It  can  at  least  carry  the  musical 
part  of  the  work,  while  the  minister  in  the  pulpit  furnishes 
the  spiritual,  devout  and  inspiring  elements  that  are 
needed  to  make  the  song  service  vital.  The  quartet  or 
chorus  choir  in  such  a  case  must  be  well  trained  in  the 
tunes  that  are  to  be  sung.  They  cannot  sing  with  confi- 
dence and  spontaneity  unless  they  are  thoroughly  familiar 
with  the  music. 

To  select  the  hymns  and  hand  them  to  the  choir  di- 
rector just  before  the  opening  of  the  service,  as  is  too  often 
done,  will  make  good  leadership  by  the  choir  impossible. 
No  matter  if  they  have  sung  the  tune  before,  with  the 
fresh,  enthusiastic,  intelligent  practice  of  the  tune  in  its 
relation  to  the  particular  hymn  which  is  to  be  sung,  they 
will  come  before  the  congregation  with  a  courage  and  an 
aggressiveness  and  a  spiritual  interpretation  that  are  abso- 
lutely impossible  where  the  minds  of  the  singers  must  be 
concentrated  upon  the  mere  notes  of  the  tune,  and  where 
the  spiritual  attention  is  distracted  by  the  effort  to  make 
the  unwonted  combination  of  the  words  and  the  notes. 

But  with  adequate  preparation  the  choir  can  be  of  the 
most  valuable  assistance,  for  it  gives  a  solid  basis  for  the 
congregational  singing.  It  gives  the  needed  confidence 
and  leadership.  Each  person  in  the  congregation  will 
feel  that,  while  he  may  not  quickly  make  the  combination 
of  words  and  tune,  there  will  be  no  danger  of  any 
lapse  or  failure,  and  there  will  be  a  freedom  and  hearti- 


LEADERSHIP  IN  SINGING  213 

ness  in  the  congregational  singing  that  would  not  be 
possible  without  such  a  backing. 

Our  great  leaders  in  evangelistic  song  lay  great  stress 
upon  the  necessity  of  such  a  choir  to  the  success  of  their 
musical  work.  In  the  Moody  Institute  at  Chicago  there 
is  a  great  choir  of  150  voices  under  the  direction  of  Dr. 
D.  B.  Towner,  one  of  the  most  successful  evangelistic 
leaders  of  song  in  the  world.  With  such  a  choir,  it  does 
not  matter  whether  the  song  which  needs  to  be  sung  in 
the  particular  emergency  in  the  meeting  is  known  to  the 
general  congregation  or  not;  it  is  announced  and  the 
choir  sings  with  spontaneity  and  power  even  though  the 
general  congregation  may  not  be  able  to  participate  im- 
mediately ;  by  the  time  the  second  verse  is  sung,  the  in- 
spiration of  the  spontaneous  singing  of  the  choir  seizes 
the  congregation  and  the  participation  becomes  quite 
general.  When  the  last  stanza  is  finally  sung,  choir  and 
congregation  together  reach  the  culmination  of  the  pos- 
sibilities of  the  selection  in  hand.  It  will  thus  be  seen 
that,  after  all,  where  the  musical  resources  permit  it,  the 
most  effective  and  most  resourceful  leadership  will  be 
found  in  the  combination  of  the  efficient  precentor  and 
the  strong  chorus  choir. 

Where  no  leader  with  a  sufficiently  strong  voice  can 
be  secured,  a  cornet  will  make  a  passable  substitute. 
Such  a  cornetist,  however,  will  need  the  masterful  quali- 
ties of  a  precentor  in  order  to  get  good  results.  Where 
there  is  no  choir  and  the  congregation  is  large  and  more 
or  less  unwieldy,  a  number  of  cornets  may  be  located  at 
various  strategic  points  with  good  effect.  It  should  be 
remarked,  however,  that  no  precentor  should  be  asked  to 
sing  in  competition  with  these  instruments.  In  small 
meetings  the  cornet  should  be  used  only  in  the  absence 


214  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

of  a  vocal  precentor,  and  in  large  meetings  should  take 
the  place  of  the  leader's  voice.  In  the  latter  case  the 
cornetists  should  be  impressed  with  their  subordination 
to  the  general  precentor  in  his  leadership.  Where 
stringed  instruments  and  the  softer  wood  instruments 
can  be  secured,  they  will  add  greatly  to  the  richness  of 
the  result  without  adding  strain  to  the  precentor's  efforts. 

But  leadership  is  not  the  only  factor  with  which  the 
minister  ambitious  to  succeed  with  his  congregational 
singing  must  reckon.  The  organ  accompaniment  is 
usually  an ,  important  factor.  There  has  been  of  late 
years  a  reaction  from  the  old  antagonism  against  organs 
which  has  led  to  an  undue  emphasis  of  their  value.  In 
many  congregations  the  organ  relieves  the  members  of 
their  sense  of  obligation  to  participate.  It  covers  the  de- 
ficiencies in  the  singing,  it  is  true,  but  it  also  obscures 
and  neutralizes  the  vibrant,  psychical  value  of  human 
song.  So  surfeited  with  excessive  organ  accompaniment 
do  I  often  become,  that  it  is  a  real  delight  once  in  a 
while  to  get  into  a  church  where  the  human  voice  is 
heard  untrammelled  by  instrumental  support.  The  organ 
really  is  not  an  unmixed  good ;  it  often  is  actually  an  un- 
mixed evil. 

For  the  organist  on  the  stool  or  bench  can  make  or 
mar  the  singing  by  his  good  or  bad  playing.  Even  the 
precentor  is  helpless  in  his  hands,  if  he  chooses  to  be  in- 
dependent of  all  direction.  For,  after  all,  the  organ  is 
much  more  powerful  than  any  single  voice,  and  if  the 
organist  does  not  subordinate  himself  to  the  wishes  of 
the  minister  and  of  the  precentor,  nothing  but  confusion 
can  result. 

The  organist  can  be  a  great  help  in  keeping  a  large 
congregation  up  to  time.     If  he  will  play  in  a  marked, 


LEADEESHIP  IN  SINGING  215 

staccato  way,  it  will  very  greatly  assist  the  congregation 
in  the  first  place  in  getting  a  sense  of  the  time  desired, 
and  in  the  second  place  in  keeping  up  to  that  time. 
Again  the  organist  can  be  of  great  assistance  by  indicat- 
ing the  varying  force  to  be  used  by  the  congregation.  If 
a  plaintive  stanza  is  to  be  sung,  the  organist  can  change 
his  registration  and,  as  he  plays  more  softly,  the  dullest 
singer  in  the  congregation  will  appreciate  that  he  is  not 
to  bellow.  On  the  other  hand,  if  some  great,  triumphal 
stanza  is  to  be  sung,  he  can  pull  out  his  loud  stops,  per- 
haps even  his  mixtures,  and  whether  consciously  or  un- 
consciously, the  congregation  will  also  pull  out  all  their 
stops  and  sing  with  might  and  main. 

But  an  organist  who  has  no  sympathy  with  American 
congregational  singing  can  do  immense  harm.  He  can 
play  our  rhythmical  tunes  with  such  excessive  emphasis 
of  the  rhythm  and  with  such  excessive  speed,  that  they 
become  flippant  and  irreverent.  He  can  so  vary  the 
harmonic  structure  of  regular  hymn  tunes  as  to  break  up 
the  part  singing  so  characteristic  of  American  church 
music.  His  secularity  of  style  and  flippancy  of  inter- 
polated grace  notes  and  rhythmical  byplay  can  rob  the 
entire  service  of  song  of  its  devoutness.  He  is  a  son  of 
Achan,  depriving  the  church  of  the  victories  it  might 
otherwise  win. 


V 

METHODS  IN  CONGREGATIONAL  SINGING 

WITHOUT  any  special  discussion,  or  even  intel- 
ligent canvass  of  the  reasons  for  or  against, 
a  general  consensus  of  opinion  has  been 
reached  favourable  to  making  the  Sunday  morning  serv- 
ice severely  formal  and  dignified.  I  have  no  disposition 
to  reopen  the  subject,  for  I  believe  that  this  generally  ac- 
cepted conception  of  that  service  is  proper  and  right.  I 
do  wish  incidentally  to  raise  the  question  whether  a  good 
many  ministers  and  congregations  have  not  gone  to  an 
extreme  in  the  matter  ;  whether  they  have  not  emphasized 
the  form  at  the  expense  of  the  content;  whether  their 
formality  has  not  degenerated  into  mechanical  conven- 
tionality ;  whether  the  dignity  and  fitness  of  any  given 
exercise  or  method  have  not  been  decided  rather  by  con- 
siderations of  "  good  form  "  than  by  a  direct  perception 
of  what  is  due  the  infinite  majesty  of  the  God  for  whose 
worship  the  congregation  assembles. 

Now  it  is  this  latter  criterion  that  ought  to  be  applied  in 
considering  the  manner  of  the  singing  and  of  the  methods 
that  may  be  used  in  vitalizing  and  inspiring  the  singing  of 
the  congregation.  The  evening  service  may  be  set  aside 
for  aggressive  work  in  recognition  of  the  church's  duty  to- 
wards men.  The  morning  service  is  a  recognition  of  the 
church's  obligations  to  God.  It  is  a  gathering  of  the 
saints,  of  the  children  of  God.  It  is  a  conscious,  deliberate 
approach  in  a  collective  way  to  the  presence  of  God.  It 
is   the   supreme   hour   in   the   life  of  the  local  church. 

216 


METHODS  IN  CONGKEGATTONAL  SINGING    217 

Dignity  and  solemnity,  quiet  devotion  and  reverent 
humility,  hushed  awe  and  adoring  ecstasy,  must  charac- 
terize the  Sunday  morning  worship.  Unusual,  distract- 
ing mechanical  devices,  such  as  may  be  used  with  profit 
in  other  less  dignified  services,  here  are  out  of  place.  But 
any  methods  that  are  compatible  with  this  elevated  idea 
of  the  service,  that  plainly  assist  the  people  in  attaining 
the  proper  attitude  of  mind  for  such  a  service,  should  be 
introduced  even  though  unusual  or  unauthorized  by  gen- 
eral usage. 

It  will  depend  somewhat  on  the  attitude  of  the  partic- 
ular congregation  where  the  line  of  unfitness  must  be 
drawn :  some  congregations  are  more  fastidious  than  others. 
If  prefaced  by  a  word  stating  why  he  wishes  it  done,  it 
seems  to  me  that  in  any  congregation  the  precentor  may 
ask  for  the  repetition  of  a  stanza,  perhaps  more  softly, 
perhaps  more  vigorously  ;  may  ask  that  some  particular 
stanza  be  sung  by  the  choir  or  even  by  some  soloist ;  may 
give  suggestions  as  to  the  spirit  and  force  in  which  a 
whole  hymn  or  some  part  of  it  is  to  be  sung ;  may  make 
on  his  own  initiative  appropriate  comment  on  what  is  to 
be  sung.  How  much  further  he  may  go,  must  depend 
on  the  liberty  given  him  by  the  pastor,  or  on  his  tact  and 
courage. 

But  in  the  evening  service  and  other  less  formal  meet- 
ings he  may  take  advantage  of  a  number  of  mechanical 
devices  to  add  spirit  and  freshness  to  the  song  service. 
He  can  divide  the  audience  into  two  groups,  which  sing 
different  stanzas  alternately,  combining  on  the  chorus  or 
on  some  culminating  stanza  of  the  hymn.  If  he  has 
competent  singers  at  hand,  solos  and  duets,  or  quartets 
may  be  used,  followed  by  the  congregation  as  a  whole. 
He  can  use  a  much  more  demonstrative  style  in  bringing 


218  PE ACTIO AL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

out  the  spirit  and  power  of  the  congregation  ;  he  can  give 
direction  with  reference  to  the  singing,  whether  it  shall 
be  faster  or  slower,  louder  or  softer  ;  he  can  even  interrupt 
a  congregation  in  the  midst  of  a  stanza,  if  he  has  the 
courage  and  address  necessary  to  do  so  gracefully,  in 
order  to  secure  a  result  they  are  missing. 

That  a  congregation  knows  a  hymn  and  its  tune  well 
and  sings  it  vigorously  does  not  prove  that  it  is  success- 
fully used.  The  only  result  may  be  a  physical  exhilara- 
tion due  to  the  heart  stimulus  produced  by  the  nervous 
excitement  and  the  necessary  deep  breathing.  There 
must  not  only  be  strong  singing,  but  intelligent  and 
emotionally  earnest  singing.  The  needed  intelligence 
and  emotional  sincerity  must  be  injected  where  they  are 
wanting,  or  stimulated  where  they  are  feeble,  by  com- 
ments at  the  beginning  of  the  hymn,  or  interspersed  be- 
tween the  stanzas. 

Who  shall  make  those  comments  must  be  determined 
by  the  resources  at  hand.  If  the  leader  is  competent  to 
make  them,  it  will  greatly  unify  the  song  service  and 
greatly  relieve  the  strain  upon  the  preacher.  But  leaders 
who  are  spiritual  enough  to  see  the  need  and  intelligent 
enough  to  meet  it  with  wisdom  and  effectiveness  are  ex- 
tremely rare.  It  usually  becomes  the  preacher's  privilege 
to  supply  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  energy.  But  this 
has  its  advantage  again,  for  he  can  thus  unify  and  con- 
centrate all  his  resources  on  the  general  effect  he  wishes 
to  produce  by  the  song  as  well  as  by  the  sermon. 

The  great  enemy  of  interest  in  the  public  service  is 
routine.  The  very  phrase,  "  stated  service,"  has  in  it  the 
suggestion  of  setness,  of  dullness,  of  exclusion  of  the 
fresh  and  interesting.  Our  congregational  singing  suf- 
fers because  of  the  sheer  monotony  connected  with  it, 


METHODS  IN  CONGKEGATIONAL  SINGING    219 

which  acts  like  a  stupefying  drug  upon  the  sensibilities 
and  spirits  of  the  people.  If  this  monotony  is  broken  by 
varied  methods,  if  the  unexpected  constantly  occurs  in 
the  singing,  it  is  inevitable  that  there  will  be  interest  and 
consequent  participation. 

The  pastor  has  a  certain  hymn  whose  emotional  phases 
he  desires  to  develop.  He  may  read  the  hymn,  as  has 
been  suggested,  and  bring  out  the  thought  and  feeling, 
making  it  more  impressive  to  the  congregation.  Then 
he  may  ask  that  the  choir  sing  the  hymn  to  an  anthem 
setting  which  he  has  learned  they  have  already  practiced. 
He  may  ask  that  one  of  the  soloists  of  the  choir  sing  the 
hymn  as  a  solo  to  a  setting  that  brings  out  its  spiritual 
value.  Or  without  such  resources  as  these,  he  may  insist 
that  the  first  stanza  shall  be  sung  as  a  solo  to  the  tune  the 
people  expect  to  sing.  The  second  stanza  may  be  sung 
by  the  ladies  of  the  congregation,  and  if  the  hymn  is  one 
of  aggressiveness,  and  there  are  men  enough  in  the  con- 
gregation to  make  it  practicable,  he  may  ask  that  the 
next  stanza  be  sung  by  the  men's  voices.  If  there  is  a 
large  number  of  children  in  the  congregation,  they  may 
be  asked  to  sing  a  stanza  that  shall  be  appropriate  to  their 
fresh  voices.  If  the  hymn  has  a  responsive  element,  it 
may  be  brought  out  by  having  the  choir  and  congrega- 
tion respond  to  each  other,  or  by  having  different  parts 
of  the  congregation  sing  antiphonally.  When  the  con- 
gregation itself  then  sings  the  closing  stanza  with  the  in- 
terest that  has  been  created  by  this  varied  method  of 
singing,  the  minister  will  find  that  it  is  the  culmination 
of  an  upward  emotional  movement  that  will  realize  the 
result  he  desires. 

Such  methods  will  call  out  instant  appreciation  from 
the  congregation,  and  it  will  respond  to  this  fresh  ele- 


220  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

ment  in  the  service  with  enthusiasm  and  spirit.  There 
will  be  more  earnest  and  intelligent  singing,  more  general 
participation  and  a  more  responsive  and  spiritual  atmos- 
phere in  the  whole  service.  But  such  variety  must  de- 
pend upon  the  character  of  the  service,  as  I  have  already 
indicated. 

The  tempo  in  which  ordinary  congregational  tunes  are 
to  be  sung  must  be  suited  to  the  capacity  and  the  size  of 
the  audience.  A  small  congregation  of  skilled  singers 
can  successfully  take  a  much  faster  time  than  a  large  con- 
gregation of  average  people.  There  is  perhaps  no  blunder 
that  is  made  so  often  as  that  of  taking  too  fast  a  movement 
in  a  large  congregation.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  when  a 
leader  proposes  to  show  a  congregation  how  to  sing  an 
established  tune  in  a  tempo  more  rapid  than  it  is  usually 
sung,  he  simply  displays  his  incapacity  rather  than  his 
superior  knowledge.  The  leader  takes  pains  to  assert 
his  position  as  leader  by  singing  just  a  little  ahead  of  the 
congregation,  with  an  annoying,  nagging  effect  of  vainly 
trying  to  hurry  the  movement.  The  result  is  that  the 
leader  loses  control  of  the  congregation.  He  is  put  in 
the  position  of  acknowledging  defeat,  and  every  one  feels 
that  the  exercise  is  a  failure. 

The  effort  to  "  rush  "  a  large  congregation  is  always 
unwise.  Both  Mr.  Sankey  and  Mr.  Excell  learned  the 
art  of  adapting  their  time  to  that  of  the  congregation, 
with  most  magnificent  results.  Everybody  sings,  be- 
cause everybody  feels  that  he  can  sing  comfortably,  with- 
out a  sense  of  the  leader's  whip  cracking  about  his  ears, 
or  of  being  taken  by  the  coat  collar  and  dragged  along  at 
an  unnatural  and  confusing  rate.  At  the  same  time,  if 
the  congregation  has  fallen  into  the  bad  habit  of  drearily 
dragging  its  tunes,  it  may  be  wise  to  gradually  establish 


METHODS  IN  CONGBEGATIONAL  SINGING    221 

a  different  habit ;  but  he  can  only  do  this  by  introducing 
the  more  rapid  tempo  with  a  hearty,  cheerful  explanation 
that  will  win  the  good-will  and  obedience  of  the  people. 

The  matter  of  speed  in  congregational  singing  is  often 
a  vexed,  as  well  as  vexing,  question.  There  is  in  it  the 
controlling  factor  of  personal  temperament.  One  man's 
bread  is  another  man's  poison.  Yet  there  must  be  some 
basis  of  agreement,  for  how  can  two  men  sing  together 
unless  they  be  agreed  ? 

Dr.  Lowell  Mason's  rule  was  "  that  the  words  receive 
an  utterance  about  as  rapid  as  a  due  regard  to  dignity, 
solemnity,  time,  place,  and  circumstances  permit,  and  that 
an  indolent,  careless,  and  sluggish  manner  be  avoided." 
It  should  be  said  that  this  rule  was  formulated  when  the 
old  time  drawl  was  still  greatly  in  evidence.  In  our  day 
the  pendulum  has  swung  to  the  other  extreme.  The  pre- 
centors and  the  organists  in  many  churches  are  running 
away  with  the  tunes  at  such  a  rate  that  it  is  difficult  for 
the  people  to  pronounce  the  words  properly,  even  if  they 
had  not  the  task  of  putting  together  the  words  and  music 
foolishly  placed  on  different  parts  of  the  page.  "  Onward, 
Christian  Soldiers "  is  a  processional.  The  hymn  was 
written  for  that  purpose  and  Sullivan  composed  his  music 
in  accordance  with  that  idea.  In  a  few  places  you  hear 
it  sung  as  if  it  were  a  Dead  March ;  but  in  most  aggres- 
sive churches  it  sounds  like  a  quickstep,  the  dignified 
march  degenerating  into  a  scandalous  scramble. 

Sir  George  A.  Macfarren  protests  against  this  extreme  in 
no  uncertain  terms  :  "  Let  me  refer  to  the  growing  prac- 
tice of  singing  psalm  tunes  especially, — but  some  other 
portions  of  the  church  service  likewise — at  a  speed  most 
unseemly  for  pious  strains,  and  with  as  little  emphasis  as 
solemnity.     There  is  no  warrant  for  this  hustling  liveli- 


222  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

ness  of  manner  in  any  record  of  ancient  usage,  and  it  has 
no  support  in  the  effect  it  works  in  modern  practice." 

Henry  Smart  is  even  stronger  in  his  objection.  In  an 
interview  with  Dr.  J.  S.  Curwen,  he  remarked :  "  I  won't 
play  the  tunes  fast,  and  I'll  tell  them  why.  First,  because 
it  is  vulgar ;  second,  because  it  is  musically  wrong,  for  all 
music  has  its  proper  time ;  and  third,  because  there  is  no 
authority  for  fast  playing.  .  .  .  Those  who  have  had 
the  longest  experience,  such,  for  instance,  as  Goss,  Hop- 
kins, and  the  late  George  Cooper,  are  the  authorities  and 
they  take  the  time  slowly." 

Wm.  H.  Monk,  musical  editor  of  "  Hymns  Ancient  and 
Modern  "  and  composer  of  the  admirable  tune,  "  Even- 
tide," makes  a  very  sensible  suggestion  regarding  this 
matter.  He  says  he  would  take  a  narrative  such  as 
"  When  God  of  old  came  down  from  heaven  "  (he  might 
include  any  hymn  stating  facts  or  doctrines)  quickly.  On 
the  other  hand,  a  contemplative  hymn  may  be  taken  as 
slowly  as  may  be  wished.  He  also  enforces  what  I  have 
already  stated,  that  a  large  congregation  sings  more  slowly 
than  a  small  one,  without  the  rhythmical  sense  perceiving 
any  difference. 

Sir  Joseph  Barnby  in  the  preface  to  his  "  The  Hymnary," 
protested  against  the  tendency  to  hurry  the  time  of  church 
tunes  after  this  vigorous  fashion :  "  Nothing  could  well 
be  imagined  more  indecorous  than  the  pace  at  which 
hymn  music  is  taken  in  very  many  churches.  Not  alone 
may  it  be  said  that  the  music  is  utterly  ruined  by  it,  that 
the  sanctuary  is  profaned,  that  the  sacred  words  to  which 
these  strains  are  sung  degenerate  into  a  mockery ;  these 
evils  are  as  nothing  compared  with  the  fact  that  those 
hurried  strains  are  supposed  to  represent  a  sacrifice  of 
praise,  humbly  offered  at  a  Throne  of  Grace," 


METHODS  IN  CONGKEGATIONAL  SINGING    223 

What  is  needed  here,  is  what  I  have  been  pleading  for 
in  other  lines  of  this  work — discrimination !  Mechan- 
ical, perfunctory,  insincere  singing  naturally  leads  to  a 
mechanically  common  rate  of  singing.  If  there  is  truth, 
thoughtfulness,  and  genuineness  of  feeling,  the  discrimi- 
nating variation  of  the  tempo  will  inevitably  follow. 

There  is  an  occasional  discussion  of  the  desirability  of 
expression  in  congregational  singing.  If  there  is  any 
attention  paid  to  the  variations  of  thought  and  feeling  in 
the  hymn,  the  impulse  to  express  them  with  like  variations 
of  force  and  tempo  in  the  tune  is  sure  to  rise.  Some  hymnal 
editors  have  been  so  impressed  with  the  value  of  this 
expression,  that  they  have  made  a  study  of  each  indi- 
vidual line  and  indicated  by  the  proper  signs  the  desir- 
able expression.  I  thoroughly  sympathize  with  this  effort 
to  secure  thoughtful  singing.  •  However,  there  are  limits 
of  practicability  that  are  soon  passed.  To  emphasize 
each  varying  phrase  and  to  adapt  the  expression  thus 
minutely,  is  to  make  the  singing  a  thing  of  shreds  and 
patches.  The  general  sentiment  of  the  hymn  is  the  gov- 
erning consideration.  Any  variation  above  or  below  this 
general  force  must  be  governed  and  modified  by  the  gen- 
eral impression  that  is  to  be  made. 

Then  the  lack  of  training  and  practice  in  the  con- 
gregation must  limit  the  extent  and  minuteness  of  the 
attempted  expression.  The  less  the  general  culture  and 
discrimination  in  any  audience,  the  more  limited  are  the 
possibilities.  The  mere  size  of  a  congregation  will  be  a 
governing  consideration ;  the  larger  it  is,  the  less  easily 
will  it  be  controlled.  The  character  of  the  service  or 
meeting,  in  the  liberty  it  allows  the  precentor  to  suggest 
and  urge  minuter  variations  of  expression,  will  also  have 
a  controlling  vote.     The   personality  of  the  precentor 


224  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

himself,  his  masterfulness  and  tact,  may  be  a  decisive 
factor  in  influencing  the  amount  of  expression  to  be 
attempted. 

Not  only  the  precentor,  but  the  organist  as  well,  is 
able  to  control  the  tempo  and  expression.  Speaking  of 
this  matter  of  congregational  expression,  Henry  Smart 
also  said  in  the  interview  already  referred  to :  "  If  the 
rhythm  is  jubilant,  I  pile  on  the  tone  at  the  last  verse  to 
any  extent ;  but  the  people  are  always  above  it.  Or,  if 
the  words  suggest  it,  I  go  down  to  a  Diapason  on  the 
Swell  shut.  When  I  vary  the  tone,  the  congregation 
imitates  perfectly.  If  I  increase  it,  out  they  come  ;  or  in 
a  rallentando  they  are  with  me  exactly.  We  never  had 
any  congregational  practices." 

Even  so  much  expression  as  is  here  indicated  by  Mr. 
Smart  cannot  be  secured  unless  the  organist  has  had  an 
opportunity  to  study  the  hymn  and  its  accompanying 
tune.  If  the  selection  of  the  hymns  is  left  till  the  last 
moment  and  the  precentor  and  organist  are  not  notified 
at  all,  or  at  best  only  given  a  slip  with  the  hymn  num- 
bers at  the  opening  service,  there  can  be  no  hope  of 
having  good,  expressive,  effective  congregational  singing. 

I  do  not  know  that  I  can  make  clear  the  best  method 
of  bringing  out  the  fresh  and  unhackneyed  value  of  the 
hymn  more  practically  than  by  taking  up  a  few  leading 
hymns  and  suggesting  what  may  be  done  with  them. 

Given  a  sermon  of  a  tender  nature,  on  the  Gospel  invi- 
tation, the  forgiving  grace  of  God,  the  refuge  of  God's 
saints,  or  other  like  themes,  and  the  state  of  mind  and 
heart  such  a  consideration  ought  to  produce  cannot  find 
better  emotional  expression  than  through  the  singing  of 
the  old  favourite,  "  Just  as  I  am."  Instead  of  baldly  an- 
nouncing the  number  of  the  hymn,  let  the  pastor  before 


METHODS  IN  CONGKEGATIONAL  SINGING    225 

doing  so  speak  of  the  author  of  the  hymn,  Charlotte 
Elliott,  and  her  experience  in  its  writing.  She  was  under 
conviction  for  years,  but  had  a  sense  that,  before  accept- 
ing salvation,  she  must  improve  her  own  spiritual  condi- 
tion. Dr.  Malan,  of  Geneva,  met  her,  learned  her  state 
of  mind,  and  advised  her  to  "  cut  the  cable  "  that  held 
her  to  her  past  life.  She  was  enabled  to  do  this,  and 
had  a  very  happy  experience.  As  the  expression  of  her 
feelings  at  this  time  this  hymn  was  written.  It  has  been 
characterized  as  "  the  divinest  of  heart  utterances  in  song 
that  modern  times  have  bestowed  upon  us."  After  such 
an  introduction  the  people  will  turn  with  interest  to  the 
hymn  on  the  announcement  of  the  number.  As  they  do 
so  let  the  minister  ask  the  people  whether  they,  too,  cannot 
"  cut  the  cable,"  as  they  sing  the  first  stanza  very  softly. 

At  the  close  of  the  first  verse  let  the  minister  speak  of 
the  comfort  this  hymn  has  been  to  persons  of  all  grades 
of  social  and  intellectual  standing.  Tell  the  anecdote  of 
the  little  boy  bringing  a  tattered  leaflet  that  had  been 
found  in  his  sister's  pocket  after  her  death,  and  asking 
for  a  clean  copy  for  his  father ;  how  Wordsworth's  daugh- 
ter in  her  dying  hours  repeated  the  lines  of  this  hymn 
over  and  over  again.  Then  let  him  ask  some  member 
of  the  choir  with  a  thoroughly  sympathetic  voice  to  sing 
the  next  stanza  as  a  solo. 

Let  the  minister  speak  of  the  agony  of  doubt  and 
infidelity  and  tell  the  anecdote  Dr.  McCook  relates  of 
an  infidel  young  lady  who  was  dying  of  consumption. 
Asked  to  visit  her,  he  found  her  extremely  defiant  and 
fierce,  but  evidently  in  great  distress  of  mind.  A  second 
visit  was  even  worse,  for  she  was  actually  insulting,  and 
he  went  away  thoroughly  determined  never  to  see  her 
again.     But  she  was  on  his  heart,  and  he  could  not  stay 


226  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

away.  The  next  time  he  said  nothing  about  spiritual 
things,  but  at  the  close  of  a  little  general  conversation, 
he  asked  whether  he  might  repeat  a  hymn.  She  gave 
him  permission  rather  ungraciously,  and  he  repeated 
with  great  earnestness  and  pathos  this  hymn,  "  Just  as 
I  am."  She  turned  her  face  to  the  wall  and  he  left  her 
without  a  word.  The  next  day  she  sent  for  him,  and  as 
he  entered  the  door  she  cried  with  a  radiant  face,  "  O 
Dr.  McCook,  I've  come  ! "  Then  let  him  ask  the  choir 
to  sing  the  third  verse  without  accompaniment. 

Before  singing  the  fourth  verse  the  minister  may  tell 
the  pathetic  story  of  the  native  of  India  whom  a  mis- 
sionary found  dying  along  the  roadside.  He  found  he 
was  a  Christian  and  his  last  breath  whispered  the  words, 
"  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanseth  us  from  all  sin." 
Some  stray  seed  had  fallen  into  even  a  heathen's  heart 
and  had  sprung  up  for  the  eternal  harvest.  Let  this  verse 
be  sung  by  the  ladies  of  the  choir  and  congregation. 

Before  the  fifth  verse  is  sung,  the  narrative  of  the  dying 
Sunday-school  teacher  may  be  given.  Taken  ill  away  at 
college,  she  was  told  that  she  had  only  a  few  days  to  live. 
She  asked  to  be  taken  home.  Arrived  there,  she  sent 
for  her  Sunday-school  class,  not  one  of  whom  had  ac- 
cepted Christ.  She  talked  with  them  and  urged  their 
committing  themselves  to  Christ  with  seemingly  little 
avail.  Then  she  began  singing  this  hymn.  One  by  one 
the  scholars  knelt  at  her  bedside,  and  before  her  failing 
voice  had  whispered  out  the  last  stanza,  all  were  in  prayer 
and  weeping,  submitting  themselves  to  the  Christ  whom 
their  dying  teacher  had  so  earnestly  recommended.  Let 
the  whole  congregation  sing  the  last  verse  softly.  Prop- 
erly and  sympathetically  done,  such  a  rendering  of  the 
hymn  cannot  fail  of  blessed  results. 


METHODS  IN  CONGKEGATIONAL  SINGING    227 

Here  is  another  hymn  that  it  is  almost  blasphemy  to 
sing  carelessly  and  mechanically,  yet  how  often  it  is  the 
fault  of  the  minister  and  leader  that  this  sin  is  committed. 
"  A  great  hymn  by  a  small  man  "  may  be  the  introduc- 
tion of  "  Alas,  and  did  my  Saviour  bleed,"  for  Isaac 
Watts  was  but  five  feet  high.  To  the  semi-ironical  ex- 
clamation of  a  stranger,  "  And  is  this  the  great  Dr. 
Watts  ?  "  he  replied : 

"Were  I  so  tall  to  reach  the  pole, 

Or  grasp  the  ocean  with  my  span, 
I  must  be  measured  by  my  soul ; 

The  mind's  the  standard  of  the  man." 

Then  speak  of  the  wonder  that  a  frail  little  man  should 
have  risen  to  the  conception  of  the  tragedy  on  Calvary 
expressed  in  this  hymn  and  set  the  great  English  Chris- 
tian world  to  singing  of  its  wondrous  love,  the  hymn 
being  passed  on  from  generation  to  generation,  until 
hundreds  of  millions  have  at  least  with  their  lips  made 
the  consecration  of  its  closing  stanza. 

Instead  of  the  foregoing  introduction,  the  minister 
may  speak  in  a  few  words  of  the  degraded  condition  of 
current  psalmody  before  Watts — its  uncouthness,  crudity, 
baldness — and  how  it  was  transformed  by  the  father  of 
English  hymnody.  The  stupendous  height  on  which 
this  hymn  stands  above  the  prevailing  doggerel  of  Watts' 
time  should  be  made  clear,  and  the  congregation  led  to 
the  elevation  of  mind  and  spirit  from  which  Watts  looked 
and  sang  regarding  the  crucifixion. 

Even  biographical  data  may  be  used  to  lead  up  to  an 
interested  and  genuine  singing  of  this  hymn.  Watts  was 
born  in  1674.  He  began  Latin  at  four  years,  Greek  at 
nine,  Hebrew   at  thirteen.     He  was  a  marked  case  of 


228  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

early  piety.  The  hymns  then  used  disgusted  him.  His 
father  jocularly  remarked  he  should  write  something 
better.  The  undersized  young  fellow  accepted  the  sug- 
gestion and  wrote  "  Behold  the  glories  of  the  Lamb," 
which  is  still  found  in  many  hymnals.  Thus  in  a  kindly 
jest  began  the  new  hymnology  which  has  transformed 
the  worship  of  every  English-speaking  congregation,  and 
led  to  this  marvellous  hymn,  "  Alas,  and  did  my  Saviour 
bleed." 

If  the  service  is  a  popular  one,  the  anecdotal  introduc- 
tion will  be  effective.  Hammond,  the  great  evangelist, 
especially  among  children,  was  converted  in  the  midst  of 
a  general  spiritual  drought  by  the  singing  of  this  hymn. 
In  illustration  of  the  last  stanza,  the  story  of  the  little 
girl  who  was  distributing  gifts  among  her  friends  may  be 
told.  Asked  what  she  was  giving  to  Jesus,  she  replied, 
"  I  give  myself  to  Him  ! " 

A  lad  who  was  under  great  conviction  of  sin  went  into 
a  hayloft  and  prayed  all  night,  apparently  without  any 
mental  relief.  As  he  came  down  in  the  morning,  he  said, 
"  It  is  all  that  I  can  do,"  and  that  moment  the  tide  of 
blessing  was  poured  out  upon  him. 

As  indicative  of  the  unwillingness  of  average  human 
nature  to  sing  the  last  stanza  with  absolute  sincerity  and 
earnestness,  the  story  of  the  stingy  man  may  be  quoted. 
He  was  much  wrought  upon  by  a  great  missionary  ad- 
dress, and  felt  an  unwonted  impulse  to  give  largely  to  the 
cause  ;  but  the  habit  of  a  lifetime  still  had  hold  upon  him, 
and  the  battle  was  fierce.  Finally,  he  seized  his  well- 
filled  purse  and  threw  it  vehemently  into  the  collection 
box,  crying  out  loud  in  his  mental  absorption  in  his  inner 
battle,  "  Now  squirm,  ole  natur'." 

Of  course,  so  elaborate  and  full  a  comment  is  not  prac- 


METHODS  IN  CONGBEGATIONAL  SINGING    229 

ticable  on  every  hymn  in  every  service.  Judgment  and 
discrimination  and  adaptiveness  must  be  applied  here  as 
elsewhere. 

To  some  preachers  such  an  emphasis  upon  the  musical 
service  will  seem  like  a  depreciation  of  the  sermon. 
Quite  the  contrary !  If  the  hymns  are  sung  with  the 
feeling  and  sincerity  that  ought  to  be  brought  to  them, 
the  congregation  will  have  been  prepared  for  the  proper 
reception  of  the  discourse.  They  will  be  like  a  harp  that 
has  been  properly  pitched  and  tuned,  and  the  preacher 
can  play  upon  them  with  a  facility,  with  a  completeness, 
he  could  secure  in  no  other  way.  There  will  be  a  respon- 
siveness of  soul,  a  power  of  spiritual  apprehension,  a 
tenderness  of  spirit,  a  pliability  of  will,  that  will  lighten  his 
task  and  make  large  results  tenfold  more  certain. 


VI 

THINGS  TO  AVOID  IN  CONGREGATIONAL 
SINGING 

IN  closing  the  consideration  of  this  part  of  my  sub- 
ject may  I  indulge  in  a  few  miscellaneous  warnings 
that  seem  to  me  important  ? 

Perhaps  no  habit  is  so  disturbing  to  devout  minds  as 
that  of  some  ministers  who  scold  if  the  people  do  not  sing 
quite  to  their  liking.  I  have  known  the  singing  of  a 
hymn  to  be  stopped  by  a  minister  to  demand  that  the 
people  sing  louder  and  faster,  when  neither  the  hymn  nor 
the  occasion  called  for  either  noise  or  animation.  It  was 
clear  that  his  only  idea  of  successful  singing  was  volume 
and  stirring  rapidity. 

Scolding  is  never  in  place  !  If  a  people  are  dull  and 
unresponsive,  it  is  probably  due  to  the  fact  that  there  is 
nothing  to  animate  them,  nothing  to  which  to  respond. 
Wake  them,  interest  them,  inspire  them,  thrill  them,  and 
they  will  sing  with  the  spirit  and  the  understanding. 
Scold  them,  and  they  may  make  a  little  more  noise,  but 
their  singing  will  have  less  rather  than  more  spiritual 
value. 

I  ought  also  to  give  some  solemn  warnings  regarding 
the  free  treatment  of  the  hymns  in  church  service.  In 
the  first  place,  don't  talk  unless  you  have  something  to 
say,  and  can  put  into  that  something  the  earnest  feeling 
you  desire  to  develop  among  your  people.  Do  not 
gauge  the  value  of  your  remarks  by  their  intellectual  in- 
terest, but  by  their  emotional  impressiveness.     Do  not 

230 


THINGS  TO  AVOID  231 

assume  that  historical  information  about  a  hymn  or  its 
writer  is  always  in  place.  It  may  be  at  the  beginning 
of  a  service,  when  the  people  are  still  passive  in  feeling, 
and  not  at  all  at  the  close,  when  matter-of-fact  history 
will  jar  upon  their  sense  of  emotional  fitness.  It  must 
always  be  remembered  that  sentiment  and  feeling,  not 
intellectual  apprehension  of  facts  or  principles,  are  the 
proper  content  of  the  song  service,  and  all  comment  and 
illustration  must  be  governed  by  that  consideration. 

Then  there  must  be  sincerity.  If  a  hymn  does  not 
express  your  own  sincere  feeling,  and  so  deepen  and  in- 
tensify it,  better  keep  still  about  it.  Forced  sentiment, 
feelings  that  are  so  consciously  sought  for  that  you  can 
hear  the  creaking  of  the  pump,  are  nauseous  to  all  right- 
minded  persons,  and  how  much  more  to  God.  Insincere 
comment  only  thickens  the  veil  of  unreality  that  already 
hides  the  meaning  and  power  of  the  hymn  from  the 
average  worshipper.  It  is  genuineness,  sincerity,  reality, 
that  are  needed  to  revitalize  the  service  of  song  in  our 
congregations  and  nothing  else  will  do. 

Above  all  do  not  talk  too  much.  This  warning  needs 
to  be  heeded  particularly  in  regular  church  service  where 
the  people  expect  to  sing  when  the  hymn  is  announced. 
Compactness  should  be  sought  most  earnestly.  A  single 
sentence  containing  a  striking  thought,  brightly  put  and 
full  of  intense  and  sincere  feeling,  is  worth  more  than  five 
minutes  of  the  rarest  historical  facts  or  of  perfunctory  ex- 
hortation that  has  no  contagious  heat. 

There  is  the  habit  of  some  churches,  with  whom  it  is 
by  no  means  historic,  of  singing  "  Amen  "  after  every 
hymn,  whether  it  calls  for  such  a  solemn  approval  of  its 
sentiment  or  not.  Now,  I  do  not  object  to  the  singing 
of  an  "  Amen  "  after  a  hymn.     Hymns  of  worship  and 


232  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

praise  and  hymns  of  petition  are  very  fitly  closed  with 
"  Amen  "  ;  but  didactic  hymns,  merely  rhymed  statements 
of  doctrine,  whether  couched  in  Scriptural  or  theological 
language,  do  not  seem  to  require  such  an  appendix. 
With  hortatory  hymns,  or  hymns  of  brightness  and  spirit, 
an  "  Amen  "  will  be  a  decided  anti-climax.  Indeed,  the 
"  Amen  "  with  such  lyrics  is  entirely  out  of  place.  But 
when  we  turn  to  the  hymnals  of  great  denominations, 
prepared  by  men  who  are  supposed  to  represent  the 
highest  culture,  the  keenest  intelligence,  and  the  most 
refined  taste,  we  are  amazed  to  find  them  absolutely  ob- 
livious to  this  proper  distinction  in  the  use  of  "  Amen." 
It  becomes  a  bit  of  mechanism,  a  sort  of  Thibetan  wind- 
mill, with  which  it  is  hoped  to  add  impressiveness  and 
devoutness  to  the  service. 

There  is  an  impulse  often  observable  among  organists 
to  vary  the  monotony  of  playing  the  same  tune  over  and 
over  by  changing  the  harmony.  This  very  general  tend- 
ency is  only  strengthened  if  an  organist  studies  abroad, 
where  unison  singing  enables  the  accompanist  to  vary 
the  harmony  at  pleasure,  and  to  introduce  such  elaborate 
embroideries  in  the  other  parts  as  he  may  be  able  to 
command  without  disturbing  the  melody.  Naturally  the 
musician,  impressed  with  the  strength  and  massiveness  of 
unison  singing  and  eager  for  the  larger  liberty  it  gives 
his  playing,  returns  home  to  America  an  ardent  promoter 
of  this  new  musical  gospel. 

Now  unison  singing  is  entirely  in  place  in  Europe,  es- 
pecially in  Germany.  Its  historical  roots  run  deep  into 
the  Middle  Ages  of  Europe  and  into  the  later  dark  ages 
of  German  history,  when  harmony  as  we  know  it  had 
not  been  developed  and  the  prevalent  ignorance  among 
the  masses  made  any  other  than  unison  singing  impossi- 


THINGS  TO  AVOID  233 

ble.  The  whole  musical  service  was  shaped  by  this  con- 
sideration. The  more  important  part  music  was  sung  by 
trained  choirs  of  boys  and  priests  where  sufficient  re- 
sources were  at  hand  to  provide  them,  while  the  ignorant 
populace  sang  a  limited  range  of  melodies,  to  which 
organ  or  other  instrumental  accompaniment  was  added 
where  practicable. 

This  limitation  of  popular  participation  has  had  some 
peculiar  results.  While  the  development  of  secular 
music  of  every  form,  and  especially  of  the  related  choral 
compositions  for  male  and  mixed  voices  in  Germany 
during  the  last  century  and  a  half  has  been  marvellous, 
hardly  a  single  choral  now  in  actual  use  has  been  com- 
posed during  that  time,  those  now  sung  being  from  two 
to  four  hundred  years  old.  The  spring  of  popular  sacred 
music  has  run  dry,  and  America  and  Switzerland  furnish 
all  the  new  religious  songs  introduced  into  Germany,  that 
land  of  song. 

Even  where  unison  singing  is  the  rule  you  will  find 
altos  singing  a  third  below.  Basses  will  be  heard  growling 
a  fifth  or  an  octave,  or  even  two  octaves  below.  I  need 
hardly  say  that  the  result  to  educated  ears  is  in  neither 
case  very  pleasing  nor  inspiring.  It  is  not  strange,  there- 
fore, that  even  in  Europe  this  tendency  is  deprecated  as 
shown  by  the  following  paragraph  in  the  London  Christian 
World  from  the  pen  of  an  eminent  musician  : 

"  In  Scotland,  where  I  have  spent  some  days  recently, 
there  is  considerable  apprehension  among  the  choir  mas- 
ters of  the  Presbyterian  churches  lest  the  coming  Pan- 
Presbyterian  Hymnal  should  have  its  music  edited  by  an 
English  cathedral  organist  out  of  sympathy  with  congre- 
gational singing  and  the  genius  of  Presbyterian  psalmody. 
The  precentors  or  conductors  of  psalmody  have  reason 


234  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

on  their  side.  Scottish  congregations  to  a  large  extent 
sing  in  harmony,  and  they  are  less  disposed  than  English 
congregations  to  let  the  choir  or  organ  do  the  work  for 
them.  Hence  the  need  of  vocal  parts  in  the  harmonies 
such  as  are  interesting  to  sing  and  not  too  discordant. 
Strong  dissonances  are  for  the  organ,  not  for  voices. 
The  church  authorities  will  be  wise  if  they  consult  the 
practical  men,  whose  interests  are  altogether  in  favour  of 
melodious  and  hearty  singing." 

So  high  an  authority  on  the  subject  as  Dr.  Stainer 
argues  against  unison  singing  :  "  Experience  proves  that 
pure  unison  singing  never  can  and  never  will  be  adopted 
for  parochial  use.  Providence  has  given  mankind, 
roughly  speaking,  two  broad  divisions  of  voice,  one  high, 
the  other  low.  Women  and  boys  are  either  trebles  or 
altos  ;  men,  either  tenors  or  basses.  Those  portions  of 
unison  music  which  lie  comfortably  in  the  range  of  the 
trebles  and  tenors  are  so  uncomfortably  high  for  altos 
and  basses  that  they  cannot  long  sustain  them  in  tune. 
When  the  music,  on  the  other  hand,  suits  the  range  of 
altos  and  basses,  the  other  voices  seem  to  have  lost  all 
brightness  and  beauty.  It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say 
that  four  part  singing  is  more  truly  natural  than  singing 
in  unison." 

In  my  boyhood  the  chief  church  music  I  heard  was  the 
grand  old  German  chorals  sung  in  unison.  While  I  never 
lacked  appreciation  for  the  chorals  and  their  strong,  im- 
pressive harmonies,  the  horrible  discordant  singing  of  the 
melody  was  often  unendurable.  Half  the  men  could  not 
make  a  musical  sound  above  C,  but  if  the  melody  ran  up 
to  E  or  even  F,  they  still  made  a  desperate  effort  to  reach 
the  high  notes  with  results  impossible  to  describe  or  even 
fittingly  to  characterize.     Some  reached  D,  a  few  E  flat, 


THINGS  TO  AVOID  236 

but  with  their  stentorian  lungs  forcing  these  varied  dis- 
cordant tones,  the  effect  suggested  the  bellowing  of  the 
priests  of  Baal ! 

Unison  congregational  singing  is  an  exotic  importation 
in  America.  The  original  sacred  music  issued  in  this 
country  was  fugal  in  style  and  the  several  parts  found 
full  recognition.  Even  where  musical  culture  is  absent, 
altos  spontaneously  feel  for  the  third  or  sixth  below  the 
melody,  and  the  basses  strike  the  fundamental  tones  of 
the  chord.  The  American  individualism  finds  its  mu- 
sical expression  in  this  part  singing,  just  as  the  same  demo- 
cratic spirit  does  in  Switzerland,  and  this  national  impulse 
will  have  its  way.  When  the  average  American  congre- 
gation really  sings,  it  makes  vastly  better  music  than  the 
average  European.  The  simple  chords  of  the  tonic, 
dominant,  and  subdominant,  so  railed  at  by  decriers  of 
American  music,  develop  a  richness  in  a  vast  assembly, 
such  as  gathered  about  Moody,  that  no  mere  melody,  no 
matter  how  strong  its  instrumental  support  may  be,  can 
approach. 


Part  IV 
The  Management  of  Church  Choirs 


THE  PURPOSE  OF  THE  CHOIR 

IT  was  very  natural  that  when  public  worship  in  the 
Christian  Church  began  to  evolve  from  the  secret 
meeting  in  some  obscure  chamber  into  a  more  dig- 
nified and  stately  public  form,  that  there  should  be  a 
sense  that  congregational  singing  with  its  limitations  and 
shortcomings  was  not  ample.  The  idea  lay  on  the  very 
surface,  that  the  best  singers  of  the  congregation  should 
be  gathered  together  to  sing  songs  and  hymns  that  were 
not  within  the  capacity  of  the  great  multitude.  With 
the  ascetic  influence  that  soon  began  to  take  hold  of  the 
Church,  the  step  to  the  choir  made  up  of  men  and  boys 
only  was  an  easy  one,  and  the  further  development  into 
a  choir  made  up  of  the  lower  clergy  was  equally  logical. 
The  result  was  that  with  the  elaboration  of  the  church 
music,  the  musical  part  of  the  service  fell  more  and  more 
into  the  hands  of  these  choirs  and  the  congregations  were 
more  and  more  shut  out  from  participation. 

The  same  influence  has  been  felt  in  our  own  day  when 
artistic  quartet  choirs  have  so  absorbed  the  whole  musical 
service,  or  at  least  have  set  so  high  a  standard,  that  any 
other  seemed  unworthy  beside  that  which  they  furnished. 
In  such  cases  congregational  singing  becomes  a  thing  of 
the  past.  Moody  says  of  such  a  church  :  "  I  once  went 
to  a  church  to  hold  a  meeting.  The  choir  sang  one  fine 
hymn  after  another,  and  the  people  could  not  join. 
Well,  I  thought  I  would  get  the  better  of  the  choir  and 
have  all  sing.     So  I  asked  for  '  Rock  of  Ages/  when 

239 


240  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

bless  your  soul !  they  started  it  in  a  tune  I  had  never 
heard  before,  and  none  save  the  choir  sang  again." 

The  fact  that  the  choir  is  subject  to  abuse  and  has  been 
seriously  detrimental  to  the  religious  and  spiritual  life  of 
the  congregation  is  no  reason  why  it  should  not  be  used 
within  proper  limits  and  bounds.  It  is  like  fire,  a  good 
servant,  but  a  poor  master.  If  it  becomes  a  matter  of 
pride,  its  governing  motive  will  infect  the  whole  church 
life.  A  choir,  self-absorbed  in  its  own  work,  with  only 
artistic  ideals  to  consider,  will  soon  turn  the  most  spir- 
itual church  into  a  mere  religious  club.  But  a  good 
choir,  devoted  to  spiritual  things,  skilfully  used  by  a 
spiritual  pastor,  can  be  made  an  engine  of  power  for 
good. 

The  value  of  a  good  chorus  choir  has  been  recognized 
in  all  parts  and  ages  of  the  Christian  Church,  even  in  the 
most  unexpected  places.  Mrs.  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe 
in  her  "  Poganuc  People "  very  sympathetically  and 
graphically  describes  the  effect  of  good  choir  music  on 
stern  New  England  Puritans  :  "  Whatever  the  trained 
musician  might  say  of  such  a  tune  as  old  *  Majesty/  no 
person  of  imagination  or  sensibility  could  hear  it  well 
rendered  by  a  large  choir  without  deep  emotion.  And 
when  back  and  forth  from  every  side  of  the  church  came 
the  different  parts  shouting, — 

*  On  cherubim  and  seraphim 
Full  royally  He  rode, 
And  on  the  wings  of  mighty  winds 
Came  flying  all  abroad,' 

there  came  a  stir  and  thrill  through  many  a  stern  and 
hard  nature,  until  the  tempest  is  cleared  off  in  the 
words, — 


THE  PUEPOSE  OF  THE  CHOIE  241 

1  He  sat  serene  upon  the  floods 
Their  fury  to  restrain, 
And  He  as  sovereign  Lord  and  King 
Forever  more  shall  reign.' 

And  when  the  doctor  rose  to  his  sermon  the  music  had 
done  its  work  upon  his  audience  in  exalting  their  mood 
to  listen  with  sympathetic  ears  to  whatever  he  might 
have  to  say." 

It  is  sometimes  a  good  thing  to  go  back  to  first  prin- 
ciples. These  are  often  so  covered  up  with  corollaries, 
inferences,  subordinate  and  contiguous  ideas,  that  they 
are  lost  to  sight.  Every  one  is  presumed  to  know  the 
purpose  of  a  choir,  but  how  many  of  them  are  actually 
conducted  with  that  purpose  primarily  in  view?  Let  me 
try  a  negative  method  of  emphasizing  the  well-known 
purpose  of  a  choir — let  me  try  the  process  of  exclusion  ! 

The  choir  is  not  intended  primarily  to  add  variety  to 
the  services  of  God's  house.  Too  frequently  it  is  looked 
upon  as  a  mere  stop-gap,  a  device  to  vary  the  monotony 
of  the  preaching  and  praying  which  would  otherwise 
severely  tax  the  attentive  power  of  the  people.  The 
tense  string  of  the  bow  is  slackened  in  order  that  it  may 
bear  the  succeeding  strain ;  the  minds  of  the  people  are 
to  be  diverted  and  pleased  in  order  to  rest  them  for  the 
severer  parts  of  the  service.  I  grant  that  this  is  an  inci- 
dental advantage  that  is  wholly  legitimate,  but  it  is  by  no 
means  one  of  the  chief  results  to  be  sought. 

Nor  is  it  the  primary  purpose  of  the  choir  to  minister  to 
the  social,  intellectual,  or  artistic  pride  of  the  congrega- 
tion. Every  church  should  have  the  very  best  music  for 
its  services  that  its  means  and  resources  will  allow,  and 
it  is  entirely  just  and  discriminating  to  judge  its  culture 
and  enterprise  by  its  music.     But  this  is  a  matter  not  of 


242  PEAOTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

pride,  but  of  devotion  and  consecration  to  God ;  not  a 
competition  of  purses  and  artistic  discrimination,  but  a 
joyous  delight  in  giving  to  God  the  very  best  and  noblest 
of  which  we  are  capable,  without  regard  to  the  opinion 
of  the  community.  A  church  is  at  a  low  stage  of  re- 
ligious life  when  the  approval  of  men  is  its  impelling 
motive. 

Nor  is  the  choir  primarily  intended  to  be  a  means  of 
culture  to  the  singer.  True,  it  is  a  generous  musical 
education  to  be  a  member  of  some  church  choirs  ;  the 
methods  used,  the  spirit  of  musical  thoroughness  and  re- 
fined taste,  the  class  of  music  rendered,  the  accurate  and 
inspiring  instruction  of  the  leader,  whether  direct  or  in- 
direct, make  such  an  experience  of  greater  value  than  the 
time  and  effort  sacrificed  deserve.  But  that  soul  is  shal- 
low indeed  which  knows  no  higher  and  nobler  purpose 
than  its  own  selfish  development.  It  needs  religious 
rather  than  musical  growth  by  just  so  much  more  as 
religion  is  higher  than  music. 

The  choir  is  not  primarily  a  means  for  elevating  the 
musical  tastes  and  capacities  of  the  general  congregation. 
This  is  a  mistake  often  made  by  choir  leaders  who  have 
more  artistic  than  religious  capacity.  They  lose  sight  of 
the  spiritual  needs  of  the  people,  forget  the  primary  pur- 
pose of  music  in  God's  house,  and  select  and  render 
music  that  they  fondly  dream  will  chasten,  deepen,  and 
ennoble  the  musical  tastes  of  the  people  to  whom  they 
are  supposed  to  minister.  Now,  as  an  incidental  purpose, 
always  carefully  subordinated  to  the  great  primary 
purpose  of  the  choir,  and  never  allowed  to  antagonize  or 
hamper  it,  I  have  no  quarrel  with  it ;  nay,  more,  I 
sympathize  with  it,  as  cooperating  with  all  the  other  in- 
fluences  of  God's  house  in  ennobling  and  enlarging  the 


THE  PUKPOSE  OF  THE  CHOIE  243 

minds  and  hearts  of  the  assembled  worshippers.  But  to 
convert  the  house  of  God  into  a  musical  lecture-room  is 
sacrilege. 

The  great  primary  purpose  of  the  choir  is  to  honour 
God  in  His  sanctuary  with  praise  and  prayer  and  to  aid 
the  devotions  of  the  assembled  worshippers,  both  by  as- 
sisting them  and  by  representing  them  before  God. 
While  other  results  may  follow,  or  even  may  be  sought, 
this  must  be  the  supreme  and  all-controlling  end  that  may 
not  be  sacrificed  to  any  other  consideration.  No  matter 
what  the  resources,  vocal  and  instrumental,  may  be,  no 
matter  what  rare  skill  may  be  secured  for  the  rendition  of 
the  music,  it  is  all  a  miserable  failure  if  it  does  not  truly 
honour  God  and  lift  the  devotions  of  the  hearers.  This 
final  end  of  the  musical  service  must  control  the  organ- 
ization of  the  choir,  its  management,  the  selection  and 
rendition  of  its  music,  and  it  is  the  only  criterion  of  the 
proper  means  and  methods  the  choir  may  employ. 


II 

THE  FORM  OF  THE  CHOIR 

THERE  are  many  forms  which  the  choir  may 
take.  There  is  the  quartet  choir  which  has 
ruled  supreme,  and  still  is  painfully  evident  in 
many  of  our  larger  churches.  It  is  a  sort  of  confession 
of  defeat  that  the  minister  is  unable  to  organize  the 
musical  forces  of  his  people  and  work  them  effectively 
and  steadily.  It  is  such  a  limited  form  of  the  choir,  that 
some  of  the  higher  choral  possibilities  are  not  open  to  it. 
The  quartet  choir  is  very  much  more  apt  to  be  ruled  by 
purely  artistic  and  selfish  considerations.  The  solo  work 
becomes  a  matter  of  display.  The  fact  is  that  unless  a 
singer  has  unique  emotional  power  of  a  contagious  kind, 
a  solo  is  certain  to  provoke  the  critical  rather  than  the 
devotional  attitude  of  mind,  and  the  service  degenerates 
into  a  concert.  The  quartet  singers  are  usually  hired, 
and,  while  this  gives  absolute  regularity  to  their  attend- 
ance, it  is  apt  to  inject  an  element  of  commercialism 
and  professionalism  that  usually  is  fatal  to  the  spiritual 
effectiveness  of  their  work. 

Of  course  it  is  better  to  have  a  quartet  choir  than  none 
at  all,  if  the  minister  can  control  their  work,  and  can  as- 
sure himself  that  it  will  serve  spiritualpurposes  and  not 
the  "  lust  of  the  ear  and  the  pride  of  life  "  in  his  congre- 
gation. But  in  any  case  it  should  be  considered  a  tem- 
porary makeshift  until  the  latent  talents  of  the  congrega- 
tion can  be  discovered  and  trained. 

If  a  quartet  choir  is  an  unavoidable  necessity,  care 

244 


THE  FORM  OF  THE  CHOIE  245 

should  be  taken  in  the  selection  of  the  singers.  In  a 
chorus  a  few  unreligious  people  are  likely  to  have  little 
influence ;  but  with  the  solo  singing  expected  of  the 
members  of  the  quartet,  in  the  interest  of  sincerity,  they 
ought  all  to  be  unfeignedly  religious  persons. 

Four  good  solo  singers  do  not  necessarily  make  a  good 
quartet.  The  timbre  of  their  individual  voices  may  be  so 
strikingly  different  as  to  make  the  desirable  blending  im- 
possible. A  single  voice  of  great  individuality  of  colour 
will  ruin  the  perfect  union  of  the  voices.  Better  sacrifice 
unusual  range,  or  striking  solo  ability,  than  this  quality  of 
harmonious  blending.  F.  W.  Wodell,  in  his  very  excel- 
lent and  helpful  "  Choir  and  Chorus  Conducting,"  sug- 
gests that  "  it  is  less  difficult  and  expensive  to  form  a 
quartet  choir  on  the  basis  of  a  baritone  voice  for  the  bass 
part.  This  would  naturally  mean  the  association  with 
such  a  bass  of  a  mezzo-contralto,  a  lyric  tenor  and  a  high 
soprano.  Much  of  the  modern  music  for  quartet  choirs 
is  written  for  all  the  voices  at  high  pitches,  presumably 
for  the  sake  of  brilliancy,  and  such  a  quartet  as  has  just 
been  mentioned  is  needed  to  do  it  full  justice."  Another 
type  of  quartet  suggested  by  Mr.  Wodell  consists  of  "  a 
full  mezzo,  or  dramatic  soprano,  a  contralto,  a  robust 
tenor,  and  a  full  low  bass." 

A  recent  innovation  in  America  is  the  boy  choir,  in 
which  the  boys  take  the  place  of  the  women.  I  have  no 
religious  scruples,  no  aesthetic  prejudices,  no  congenital 
antipathies,  no  objections  of  any  kind  to  well-trained, 
competent  boy  choirs.  These  young  voices  often  have  a 
delightful  freshness  and  serene,  passionless  gladness  which 
fit  them  for  the  expression  of  a  limited  range  of  joyful 
religious  feeling.  Outside  of  this  their  work  is  almost 
wholly  mechanical ;  but  this  is  no  grave  objection,  for  in 


246  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

the  formal  services  where  they  are  usually  employed, 
there  is  no  call  for  profound  depths  of  remorseful  despair, 
or  the  heights  of  religious  ecstasy. 

It  is  very  difficult  to  keep  up  a  boy  choir  in  an  ef- 
ficient, practicable  way.  Discipline  must  be  rigidly  em- 
phasized, or  there  will  be  careless  and  thoughtless  prac- 
tice, irregularity  of  attendance,  and  flippancy  in  public 
work.  The  payment  of  a  small  weekly  fee,  and  a  system 
of  fines,  will  serve  as  a  basis  for  such  discipline  and  some- 
what obviate  the  difficulty,  but  even  then,  unless  you  have 
a  leader  who  delights  in  the  work  and  is  willing  to  devote 
his  leisure  time  to  the  winning  and  holding  the  loyalty 
and  good-will  of  his  charges  by  all  sorts  of  expression  of 
good  comradeship,  there  is  no  permanency. 

While  I  am  pleased  with  the  occasional  introduction 
of  boy  choirs  as  a  variation  from  the  stupefying  routine 
of  our  ordinary  church  services,  I  do  enter  my  protest 
against  the  idea  which  underlies  them,  that  it  is  unseemly 
that  women  should  take  prominent  part  in  public  wor- 
ship. Choirs  made  up  of  men  and  boys,  or  of  normal 
men  and  abnormal  men  with  soprano  and  alto  voices, 
were  organized  in  the  early  and  middle  ages,  because, 
owing  to  this  ascetic  doctrine,  women's  voices  could  not 
be  employed.  Nor  is  this  idea  yet  extinct,  as  a  recent 
Encyclical  of  Pope  Pius  X  has  directed  a  return  to  the 
ancient  custom  of  excluding  women  from  all  Roman 
Catholic  choirs ;  even  previous  to  that  the  voices  of 
women  were  heard  in  few  of  the  great  churches  of 
Europe. 

I  remember  well  my  admiration  of  the  portly,  heavy- 
mustached,  handsome  man  I  saw  in  the  singers'  gallery 
of  the  Choir  Chapel  in  St.  Peter's  in  Rome.  I  took  it  for 
granted  that  this  was  the  basso-profundo  of  the  choir. 


THE  FOKM  OF  THE  CHOIR  247 

Later  a  florid  semi-operatic  solo  with  a  rumtitum  accom- 
paniment was  sung  by  a  soprano  voice  of  clear  but  peculiar 
timbre,  and  looking  up  I  was  amazed  to  see  that  the 
soprano  soloist  was  my  magnificent  Adonis.  Anything 
more  incongruous  it  has  never  been  my  fortune  to  see 
and  hear,  unless  it  was  the  rendering  of  Root's  "  Under 
the  Palms'^at  the  leading  Methodist  church  of  York,  Eng- 
land, where  all  the  alto  solos  were  sung  by  men  who  used 
the  falsetto  register.  To  one  accustomed  to  the  promi- 
nent part  played  in  American  church  music  by  female 
voices,  the  whole  arrangement  was  distressingly  absurd, 
unnatural,  and  monstrous,  in  spite  of  the  knowledge  of 
its  theological  and  historical  basis. 

One  of  the  Saxon  princesses  of  Northern  England 
made  life  very  miserable  for  poor  St.  Cuthbert  by  her  ag- 
gressive love-making,  and  he  conceived  such  a  hatred  for 
the  whole  sex  that,  when  he  built  the  great  cathedral  at 
Durham,  he  first  proposed  to  forbid  admittance  to  women 
altogether,  but  finally  was  persuaded  to  give  them  a  little 
space  in  the  west  or  rear  end.  The  women's  dead-line 
can  still  be  seen  in  the  floor  of  the  cathedral,  a  narrow 
band  of  black  stone  stretched  across  the  nave. 

One  can  forgive  these  cowled  monks,  misguided  ascet- 
ics or  gross  in  life,  for  their  narrow  views  and  exclusive- 
ness,  since  the  clerical  organization  of  the  choir,  their 
celibate  vows,  as  well  as  the  accepted  views  of  the  in- 
feriority and  dangerousness  of  the  sex,  made  the  partici- 
pation of  women  in  the  choral  service  impossible ;  but 
that  men  of  this  century,  who  have  seen  and  possibly  re- 
joiced over  the  social  and  civic  advancement  of  the  sex, 
should  apparently  take  artistic  pride  in  perpetuating  this 
medieval  monstrosity  in  the  church,  is  beyond  all 
patience. 


248  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

Suppose  the  order  of  the  Pope  to  exclude  all  women 
from  our  organized  musical  forces  should  be  accepted 
generally  in  America,  and  spread  through  all  the  churches 
from  ocean  to  ocean,  what  an  impoverishment  of  our 
services  it  would  bring  !  In  half  our  churches  the  organ- 
ists and  directors,  and  the  most  acceptable  and  artistic 
singers  are  women.  They  have  the  leisure  and  aptitude, 
and  hence  the  culture  that  is  required  to  do  this  work 
well.  Their  golden  talents  of  religious  feeling  and  devo- 
tional living  exalt  the  service,  as  the  immaturity  and  ig- 
norance of  boys  could  not  possibly  do.  Their  capacity 
for  self-sacrifice  and  loyalty  to  their  work  affords  results 
that  could  not  otherwise  be  attained. 

There  is  no  danger  that  boys  will  displace  the  women 
in  our  American  choirs,  but  there  is  danger  that  none  of 
us  shall  appreciate  how  much  richer,  stronger,  and  more 
truly  worshipful  our  church  music  has  become,  because 
this  foolish,  and  at  root  gross,  prejudice  against  the  par- 
ticipation of  our  sisters  in  the  faith  has  been  eradicated  in 
our  land.  There  is  danger  that  we  may  thoughtlessly 
countenance  the  shallow-witted  imitation  of  the  remnants 
of  medieval  and  barbarous  Europe,  which  is  sometimes 
urged  by  musicians,  who  in  their  anxiety  to  furnish  some 
novelty  and  to  be  "  up  to  date,"  would  revive  the  fruits 
of  medieval  superstition  and  folly,  and  by  ministers  whose 
judgment  is  based  on  tradition  as  the  only  test  of 
"  churchliness." 

Occasionally  you  find  a  men's  choir  doing  good  service 
in  a  church.  There  is  a  strength,  a  virility,  in  such  a 
choir  that  is  very  attractive  and  inspiring.  Even  the 
tender  emotions  can  be  expressed  by  such  music,  es- 
pecially if  the  singers  are  competent  and  can  sing  music 
of  harmonic  richness.     One  difficulty  is  that  really  good 


THE  FOEM  OF  THE  CHOIE  249 

voices  for  men's  choirs  are  comparatively  rare.  Few 
voices  are  found  in  most  American  communities  capable 
of  taking  the  first  tenor  in  a  musical,  pleasing  way.  Our 
tenors  are  almost  all  baritones,  and  when  they  try  to  reach 
the  high  notes  they  shriek ;  when  they  are  compelled  to 
sing  a  number  of  high  notes  in  succession  they  flat. 
Under  such  a  strain  expression  is  out  of  the  question. 
The  baritones  who  sing  the  inner  parts  are  often  afflicted 
with  a  poor  ear,  do  not  sing  in  accurate  pitch  and  so  spoil 
the  harmony.  Second  basses  are  nearly  as  scarce  as  first 
tenors,  and  in  many  men's  choirs  their  lower  notes  are 
inaudible,  or  when  heard,  are  mere  unmusical  growls 
without  definite  pitch. 

A  really  good  men's  quartet  or  chorus  is  a  great  treas- 
ure to  a  church,  as  it  is  a  musical  resource  that  can  be 
applied  in  many  and  varied  ways,  adding  interest  to  the 
church  service,  proving  an  attraction  in  evangelistic  serv- 
ices, supplying  variety  to  song  services  and  church  con- 
certs, and  generally  advancing  the  aggressive  efficiency 
of  the  church  to  which  they  belong. 

But  a  men's  choir  is  a  relish,  a  novelty,  a  special  fea- 
ture, not  a  complete  solution  of  the  choir  problem.  The 
unusual  character  of  the  combination  of  voices  attracts 
too  much  interest  and  attention,  and  the  message  they 
sing  is  lost  from  sight.  They  are  not  fully  representa- 
tive of  the  general  congregation  in  their  sympathies  and 
emotions.  There  are  whole  provinces  of  religious  emo- 
tions they  have  not  sufficient  variety  and  pliability  of 
style  to  express.  These  limitations  of  style  and  express- 
iveness are  emphasized  in  the  small  range  of  the  church 
music  published  for  their  use.  There  are  few  anthems 
composed  for  them  and  they  usually  confine  themselves 
to  Gospel  songs.     A  men's  quartet  makes  an  admirable 


250  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

adjunct  to  a  church  choir,  but  will  not  be  found  an 
adequate  permanent  substitute  for  it. 

In  other  churches  there  is  such  a  scarcity  of  men's 
voices  that  a  choir  of  women's  voices  is  the  only  possi- 
bility. A  good  chorus  of  pure  women's  voices  is  very 
delightful  and  impressive.  There  is  an  ethereal  clarity,  a 
vibrant  yet  serene  feeling  in  such  music  that  is  heavenly. 
But  its  limitation  of  range  of  expression  is  even  more 
pronounced  than  in  the  men's  choir.  There  is  no  strength 
or  majesty,  only  delicacy  and  tenderness.  The  same  diffi- 
culty in  finding  proper  voices  is  evident  here  also.  Our 
sopranos  and  altos  are  both  chiefly  mezzo  sopranos. 
High  pure  sopranos  and  low  strong  altos  are  rare  voices. 
There  is  even  less  music  written  for  women's  than  for 
men's  voices.  I  should  say  that  women's  choirs  are  less 
attractive  to  general  audiences  and  less  likely  to  have 
permanent  value  for  the  musical  service  than  men's 
choirs. 

We  have  found  that  the  quartet  choir,  the  boy  choir, 
the  men's  choir,  and  the  women's  choir,  all  have  their 
value,  but  that  they  all  are  too  limited  in  their  range  of 
expression  to  permanently  serve  all  the  musical  needs 
of  any  congregation.  They  are  admirable  for  variety, 
for  special  occasions  when  the  situation  calls  for  some- 
thing unique  and  unusual,'or  for  peculiar  adaptation  to 
special  circumstances.  Each  is  valuable  in  its  place,  but 
any  one  alone  is  insufficient. 

The  ideal  choir,  after  all,  is  the  chorus  choir  made  up 
of  the  best  voices  in  the  congregation.  Twenty  voices 
of  moderate  range  and  melodiousness  can  do  more  to  lift 
the  spirit  of  the  worshipper  than  the  best  trained  quartet 
in  the  land. 

In  the  first  place  the  chorus  choir  is  a  part  of  the  con- 


THE  FORM  OF  THE  CHOIR  251 

gregation.  It  is  in  personal  relation  to  the  members  of 
the  congregation,  to  the  life  of  the  church  in  all  its 
aspects  and  phases.  It  becomes  representative,  there- 
fore, in  a  sense  that  no  quartet  choir  can  possibly  be. 
Being  representative  there  are  bonds  of  sympathy  and 
interest  between  the  choir  and  the  congregation  that 
make  effective  results  possible  that  are  entirely  out  of  the 
question  with  the  quartet  choir.  It  is  also  much  more  im- 
pressive and  effective  than  the  choir  of  four  solo  voices. 
The  large  mass  of  voices  render  possible  the  singing  of 
majestic  music  which  is  beyond  the  limitations  of  the 
quartet  choir. 

In  developing  the  chorus  choir  the  pastor  can  have  a 
very  comfortable  sense  of  adding  to  the  strength  and 
culture  and  effectiveness  of  his  own  people.  It  will  also 
bring  many  more  persons  into  a  more  direct  relation  with 
the  church  life  and  so  add  to  their  interest  and  usefulness 
in  other  aspects  of  church  work.  It  presents,  moreover, 
another  opportunity  for  the  development  of  the  social 
life  among  his  people,  for  these  singers  will  come  from 
different  elements,  coteries,  and  strata  of  his  people  and 
so  form  another  bond  of  good-will  and  fellowship  which 
are  only  too  sorely  needed  in  many  of  our  congrega- 
tions. That  with  a  good  chorus  it  is  possible  to  form  a 
men's  choir  and  a  women's  choir  for  occasional  use  is 
another  valuable  feature.  Indeed  in  a  well  organized 
and  developed  chorus  choir  one  can  have  the  solo  work, 
the  quartet  choir,  the  men's  choir,  and  the  women's  choir, 
and  so  provide  a  richness  of  resources,  a  possibility  of 
variety,  that  will  add  endless  interest  to  the  work  of  the 
church  if  wisely  and  tactfully  used. 

It  is  true  that  the  volunteer  choir  is  a  difficult  propo- 
sition.    Taken  from  all  classes  of  society  and  of  intellectual 


252  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

life,  there  are  possibilities  of  friction  that  must  be  taken 
into  account.  Musical  people  are  naturally  sensitive  peo- 
ple. They  are,  therefore,  sometimes  difficult  to  handle, 
and  the  choir  often  is  a  thorn  in  the  side  of  the  pastor. 
Their  frequent  quarrels,  irregularity  in  attendance,  their 
whims  and  notions  regarding  the  music  they  sing,  all 
serve  to  keep  the  minister  in  painful  suspense.  Some  of 
the  singers  will  flat,  others  will  sharp,  many  are  laggard 
in  time,  and  all  these  and  many  other  musical  short- 
comings and  failings  will  add  to  the  difficulties  of  the 
leader.  The  uncertainty  of  attendance  at  any  given 
service  is  often  a  source  of  great  anxiety  and  sometimes 
of  painful  mortification  to  the  minister.  But  with  all  the 
shortcomings  and  difficulties  attending  the  volunteer 
chorus  choir,  it  still  remains  the  ideal  choir,  with  the  largest 
possibilities,  with  the  best  results. 

But  the  special  music  of  the  church  need  not  be  con- 
fined to  this  chorus  choir.  Variety  demands  an  occa- 
sional change  which  can  best  be  secured  by  dropping  out 
the  regular  choir  and  using  some  substitute  for  it.  What 
that  substitute  shall  be  must  depend  on  the  local  situa- 
tion. An' adjunct  choir  or  choirs  will  be  entirely  feasible. 
This  may  consist  of  children,  either  boys  or  girls,  or 
both,  or  of  young  people  who  are  either  not  sufficiently 
developed  -'to  sing  regularly  or  who  do  not  care  to  sacri- 
fice the  necessary  time.  There  may  be  one  choir  con- 
sisting entirely  of  small  children,  another  of  half-grown 
girls,  another  of  half-grown  boys,  and  another  of  young 
people.  There  may  even  be  such  a  choir  of  grown  per- 
sons who  are  musical  and  well-trained  who  are  not  in  a 
position  to  sing  regularly. 

Depending  on  the  character  of  the  material  such  an 
organization   may  be  called  the  Adjunct  Choir,  or  the 


THE  FORM  OF  THE  CHOIE  253 

Choir  Club,  or  the  Junior  Choir,  or  the  Children's  Choir, 
as  the  case  may  be.  Social  organization  will  be  even 
more  advisable  than  in  the  case  of  the  regular  choir,  as 
otherwise  there  will  be  no  regular  work  to  keep  the 
organization  in  motion.  Of  course,  there  must  be  meet- 
ings for  instruction  and  practice  under  the  general,  if  not 
the  immediate,  direction  of  the  choir  leader.  The  music 
must  depend  on  the  general  ability  of  the  organization, 
but  must  be  adapted  to'actual  use  in  the  church  service. 
Such  supplementary  resources  may  be  used  in  connec- 
tion with  the  regular  choir  as  an  extra  relish,  so  to 
speak,  or  in  place  of  it  from  time  to  time,  giving  the 
regular  singers  a  little  vacation. 


Ill 

THE  PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CHOIR 

AS  far  as  possible  the  chorus  choir  should  ordi- 
narily contain  all  the  accessible  vocal  talent  in 
the  congregation.  There  are  many  voices  that 
have  no  fitness  for  solo  work,  which,  supported  by  stronger 
voices,  add  not  only  body  but  richness  to  the  tone  of  the 
chorus.  Unless  it  is  too  strident  and  marked,  a  slight 
individuality  of  timbre  is  not  objectionable  in  a  voice  for 
chorus  work.  The  "  off-colour  "  voices  occasionally  add 
a  brilliant  value  to  the  tone  of  the  whole  chorus  that  is 
often  immensely  effective  and  impressive.  There  is  oc- 
casionally a  fastidiousness  of  ear  in  the  choice  of  singers 
that  is  quite  unfortunate,  as  it  shuts  out  from  active 
service  persons  who  need  the  help  such  an  opportunity 
to  help  would  afford.  Besides,  some  of  these  "  ugly 
ducklings  "  have  a  very  strange  way  of  turning  out  to  be 
swans  under  the  educational  advantages  work  in  the  choir 
affords. 

Eight  voices  equally  divided  as  to  parts  is  usually 
spoken  of  as  a  double  quartet,  rather  than  as  a  chorus 
choir.  Lowell  Mason  held  that  "  The  smallest  number 
which  can  constitute  a  choir  according  to  the  modern  use 
of  the  word  is  twelve.  .  .  .  An  ordinary  church 
choir  cannot  be  successful  with  a  less  number  than  about 
twenty-four  voices,  or  six  voices  on  a  part."  With  all 
due  respect  to  Dr.  Mason,  there  are  probably  more  ef- 
ficient chorus  choirs  in  the  land  having  less  than  twenty- 

254 


THE  PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CHOIR  255 

four  than  there  are  those  having  twenty-four  or  more 
voices.  Of  course,  the  more  good  voices  one  can  secure 
the  better.  The  individuality  of  the  voices,  and  their 
several  shortcomings  and  defects,  are  lost  in  the  general 
effect  in  a  larger  choir,  as  they  cannot  be  in  a  double 
quartet  or  in  a  choir  of  ten  or  twelve  voices.  Too  much 
depends  on  the  average  character  of  the  voices,  on  their 
force,  quality,  training  and  blending  that  Dr.  Mason's 
rule  should  have  any  great  weight. 

His  suggestion  that  there  should  be  an  equal  number 
of  voices  on  a  part  is  misleading.  Men's  voices  as  a  rule 
are  stronger  than  women's.  A  robust  tenor  or  a  basso- 
profundo  will  balance  two  average  women's  voices.  In  a 
choir  of  sixteen  voices  four  basses  and  three  tenors  will 
likely  balance  three  altos  and  six  sopranos.  Too  much 
depends  on  the  individual  voices  to  apply  any  rule  with- 
out discrimination.  A  single  strong  low  bass  will  count 
for  as  much  as  two  average  baritones. 

A  very  important  matter  is  the  securing  of  a  perfect 
blending  of  the  voices.  The  more  nearly  the  voices  re- 
semble each  other  in  quality,  the  more  perfect  is  their 
harmony.  A  single  voice  of  peculiar  timbre  will  spoil 
the  work  of  a  small  choir,  while  a  large  chorus  will  only 
be  the  richer  for  the  partly  submerged  individual  quality. 
In  any  chorus,  the  standing  out  separately  of  any  voice, 
because  of  its  force  or  its  colour  of  tone,  is  a  blemish. 
The  ideal  is  the  loss  of  the  individual  voice  in  the  general 
mass  of  blending  tone. 

The  better  the  singers  can  read  music  the  more  val- 
uable they  are,  of  course ;  but  where  good  readers  are 
not  plentiful,  there  should  be  organized  a  junior  choir,  to 
whom  regular  instruction  is  given,  until  one  by  one  they 
can  be  promoted  into  the  regular  choir.     If  possible,  every 


256  PEACTICAL  CHITECH  MUSIC 

full  member  ought  to  be  able  to  read  plain  music. 
Chromatic  passages  will  puzzle  most  amateur  singers,  and 
it  would  be  folly  to  expect  them  to  sing  them  at  sight. 
Still  they  ought  to  be  able  to  control  their  voices  suf- 
ficiently well  to  learn  them  by  rote. 

In  organizing  the  chorus  choir  the  social  lines  of 
cleavage  should  be  utterly  ignored.  The  servant  girl 
with  a  good  voice  and  native  musical  feeling  should  feel 
as  welcome  as  her  mistress.  While  it  does  not  follow 
that  there  should  be  social  intimacy  in  the  choir,  there 
can  be  the  courtesy  which  any  well-bred  person  demands 
of  himself,  and  the  Christian  charity  which  overlooks  the 
ignorance  and  lack  of  breeding  evinced  by  those  less  for- 
tunately placed  in  the  social  scale.  The  house  and  wor- 
ship of  God  should  know  no  social  disparities.  Where 
they  are  allowed  to  appear,  the  very  essence  of  Chris- 
tianity is  repudiated. 

There  is  often  objection  raised  to  singing  in  a  chorus 
by  singers  who  have  taken  lessons,  on  the  plea  that 
chorus  singing  will  harm  their  voices  and  that  their 
teachers  have  forbidden  it.  What  F.  W.  Wodell  in  his 
"  Choir  and  Chorus  Conducting  "  emphatically  declares, 
is  true,  that  "  The  teacher  of  singing  who  condemns, 
without  reserve,  chorus  singing  for  vocal  students,  thereby 
confesses  ignorance  of  chorus  work,  and  also  a  lack  of 
confidence  in  his  own  teaching."  His  other  remark  in 
this  connection  is  equally  deserving  of  attention,  that 
"  Well  taught  vocal  students,  who  have  passed  the  pri- 
mary stages  of  instruction,  when  singing  in  chorus  under 
a  director  of  fine  taste  who  understands  the  voice,  can 
come  to  no  harm  vocally,  and  will  benefit  musically  by 
the  experience." 

The  question  whether  unconverted  persons  should  be 


THE  PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CHOIR  257 

allowed  to  sing  in  the  choir  comes  up  for  discussion  at 
rather  frequent  intervals.  That  it  would  be  better  if  all 
choir  singers  were  Christians,  no  one  will  deny.  Theo- 
retically, Christians  ought  to  sing  more  effectively  than 
even  unreligious,  not  to  say  irreligious,  persons,  but 
practically,  there  is  often  no  perceptible  difference. 
Moody's  argument,  that  "  it  is  no  more  inconsistent  to 
have  an  ungodly  minister  than  to  have  ungodly  people 
singing  in  the  church  choir,"  does  not  have  a  great  deal 
of  force.  The  parallel  fails  because  the  singer  is  too  sub- 
ordinate. As  well  insist  that  all  money  given  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  church  be  contributed  by  professors  of  relig- 
ion. This  is  no  place  for  the  application  of  cast-iron 
rules  so  dear  to  precise,  mechanical  minds.  Many  a  man 
turned  his  face  towards  God  when  he  began  contributing 
to  the  expense  of  sustaining  his  worship,  and  eventually 
became  an  active  Christian,  all  resulting  from  the  little 
seed-corn  of  interest.  Many  a  young  person  takes  the 
first  step  towards  a  Christian  life  when  he  joins  the  choir. 

But  all  this  presupposes  that  the  bulk  of  the  church  con- 
tributors, and,  equally,  that  most  of  the  choir  are  Christians. 
A  church  chiefly  supported  by  worldly  people,  no  matter 
how  respectable,  soon  drops  to  their  spiritual  level.  A 
choir  that  is  made  up  of  Christian  people  needs  to  guard 
against  motives  of  pride  and  vanity.  How  can  an  unre- 
ligious choir  hope  to  escape  from  these  influences  so  fatal 
to  true  worship  ? 

So  long  as  the  general  spirit  and  influence  of  the  choir 
are  religious,  the  occasional  unconverted  singer  is  to  be 
welcomed  with  the  hope  that  he  will  be  helped  as  well  as 
help.  Of  course,  here  again  good  sense  must  be  used. 
If  such  a  person  is  notoriously  drunken,  immoral,  or  an- 
tagonistic in  his  attitude  towards  religion,  he  should  not 


258  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

be  admitted,  no  matter  how  good  a  singer  he  may  be. 
When  it  becomes  known  that  such  a  person  was  tipsy 
during  the  service,  or  that  he  goes  out  during  the  service 
to  refresh  himself  at  a  saloon,  the  whole  church  is  dis- 
credited if  his  services  are  continued.  As  in  most  other 
questions  that  are  not  settled,  there  is  a  golden  mean. 

It  will  depend  not  only  upon  the  proportion  of  uncon- 
verted persons  in  the  choir,  but  upon  the  influence  which 
they  exert  upon  the  choir.  It  is  possible  for  a  single  un- 
converted person  to  have  such  an  influence  in  a  choir  as 
to  secularize  all  its  work  and  to  bring  it  down  to  an 
exclusively  artistic  basis  which  will,  to  a  great  extent, 
neutralize  its  religious  value.  On  the  other  hand,  it  may 
be  that  a  number  of  unconverted  persons  in  the  choir 
shall  be  so  dominated  by  its  general  religious  spirit  that 
their  influence  for  degrading  the  work  of  the  choir  into 
a  mere  artistic  performance  will  not  be  felt.  Indeed,  in 
many  choirs  it  has  been  the  rule,  that  unconverted 
persons  brought  into  the  choir  have  speedily  been  led  to 
accept  Christ,  and  to  become  active  workers  in  the 
church.  It  ought  to  be  recognized  as  a  duty  by  the 
religious  members  of  a  choir,  to  lead  their  unreligious 
fellow-workers  to  accept  Christ  as  speedily  as  that  result 
can  be  reached,  not  only  for  the  sake  of  the  choir,  but 
also  for  that  of  the  persons  themselves,  whose  eternal  in- 
terests are  at  stake. 

In  some  churches  it  may  be  wise  and  practicable  to 
hedge  about  the  entrance  into  the  choir  with  formal  ex- 
aminations of  voice  and  facility  of  reading,  and  so  add 
to  the  dignity  and  self-respect  of  the  choir.  In  any  case, 
every  member  should  be  impressed  with  the  great 
privilege,  as  well  as  responsibility,  of  his  work  in  order 
to   develop   his   loyal   and    conscientious    devotion  and 


THE  PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CHOIR  259 

assure  his  continuous  cooperation.  A  strong  choir  spirit 
should  be  encouraged,  and  a  public  sentiment  built  up 
that  will  weld  these  heterogeneous  elements  into  a  body 
of  unified  power  and  sentiment,  free  from  the  factions 
and  cabals  that  so  often  are  the  causes  of  its  wreck  or 
decay. 


IV 
THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  CHOIR 

A  LARGE  chorus  choir  ought  to  have  a  separate 
organization.  A  regular  constitution  and  by- 
laws, with  all  the  usual  officers,  are  desirable. 
There  should  also  be  an  executive  committee  consisting 
of  the  general  officers  and  two  additional  members 
elected  by  the  choir.  The  president  should  look  after 
the  temporalities,  so  to  speak,  leaving  the  music  director 
free  to  devote  all  his  time  to  the  purely  musical  phases  of 
the  work.  Looking  after  absentees,  securing  new  mem- 
bers, providing  for  the  social  side  of  the  choir's  work, 
looking  after  the  business  interests  of  the  choir,  its  in- 
come and  expenditures,  concerts,  hiring  solo  singers,  and 
the  like,  should  be  responsibilities  assigned  to  the  officers 
and  executive  committee.  The  treasurer  should  be  the 
financial  manager  and  disburse  all  moneys,  no  matter 
whence  they  are  derived. 

This  cabinet  of  officers  should  not  be  the  final  board 
of  control,  for  above  it  is  the  pastor,  the  director,  and  the 
music  committee  of  the  church.  All  important  matters 
should  be  submitted  to  the  choir  for  its  approval  in  order 
to  stimulate  its  interest  in  every  phase  of  its  work.  In- 
deed this  is  one  of  the  fundamental  reasons  for  such  a 
thorough  business  organization.  Regular  business  meet- 
ings can  be  held  after  specified  rehearsals  or  on  the  call 
of  the  executive  committee. 

While  I  am  aware  that  such  an  organization  has  been 

260 


THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  CHOIR      261 

called  a  "  society  for  the  prevention  of  the  peace 
and  efficiency  of  choir  directors,"  and  a  strong  plea 
made  that  the  director  should  be  the  autocrat  of  the 
choir,  I  still  think  that  with  proper  diplomacy  the 
benefits  of  both  systems  may  be  secured.  The  director 
should  be  the  musical  head — the  absolute  monarch,  if 
you  please, — when  purely  musical  work  is  on  hand,  but 
why  burden  him  with  "  serving  tables  "  ? 

If  the  materials  for  a  chorus  choir  are  abundant  it  may 
be  well  to  divide  it  into,  say,  four  sections  equally 
balanced  in  voices,  skill,  confidence,  and  in  the  parts,  re- 
quiring only  three  sections  to  sing  at  any  one  time, 
except  on  very  special  occasions  when  all  are  wanted. 
In  this  way  every  singer  gets  a  Sunday  off  every  four 
weeks,  and  perfect  attendance  can  be  insisted  upon  when 
on  duty.  Private  arrangements  for  exchanging  to  suit 
individual  convenience  may  be  allowed  under  the  super- 
vision and  approval  of  president,  secretary,  or  director. 

Then  there  should  be  a  careful  canvass  and  organization 
of  the  singers  of  the  choir.  There  should  be  a  definite 
appointment  of  a  quartet  of  soloists,  to  whom  all  solos, 
duets,  trios,  and  quartets  should  be  assigned  for  a 
specified  time,  three  or  six  months.  This  may  be  done 
by  the  election  of  the  choir  or  by  the  appointment  of  the 
leader.  If  the  solo  talent  is  abundant  and  of  equal  skill 
and  power,  there  may  be  a  second  quartet  appointed, 
alternating  with  the  first  at  the  pleasure  of  the  director. 
Or,  there  may  be  an  unwritten  law  of  complete  change  at 
the  end  of  each  term,  thus  giving  all  the  solo  talent  an 
opportunity. 

The  ladies'  voices  should  be  carefully  located  as  first 
and  second  sopranos  and  first  and  second  altos,  every 
person  knowing  definitely  which  part  she  is  to  sing,  so 


262  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

that  there  need  be  no  delay  for  organization  in  case  a 
chorus  for  women's  voices  is  decided  upon,  or  one  occurs 
in  the  course  of  a  number  chosen.  The  same  course 
should  be  pursued  with  the  men's  voices.  As  new  mem- 
bers come  in,  they  should  be  carefully  assigned,  keeping 
in  view  not  only  the  range  of  the  individual  voice,  but  the 
balancing  of  the  parts  as  well. 

A  quartet  of  women's  voices  and  one  of  men's  voices, 
which  need  not  be  solo  voices  at  all,  may  be  selected 
from  the  material  at  hand  and  so  interest  and  bring  into 
prominence  singers  who  otherwise  might  receive  no 
recognition.  With  the  voices  thus  organized  the  choir 
is  ready  for  the  widest  possible  selection  of  music  and 
capable  of  producing  a  great  variety  of  effects. 

The  thoroughness  of  such  an  organization  stimulates 
the  director  to  take  advantage  of  its  magnificent  possi- 
bilities, and  a  finer  selection  of  music  may  be  made.  On 
the  other  hand,  his  failure  to  utilize  every  feature  of  such 
an  organization,  as  opportunity  offers,  will  make  it  a  dead 
letter,  and  it  will  break  down  of  its  own  weight.  Of 
course,  so  elaborate  an  organization  is  only  possible  in 
a  large  choir  of  forty  or  more  voices,  but  even  a  small 
choir  can  organize  its  mixed,  women's,  and  men's  quar- 
tets, and  so  realize  some  of  the  advantages  outlined  above. 
These  suggestions  are  to  be  applied  with  discretion  and 
discrimination  and  worked  out  with  a  steady  purpose 
and  unfailing  tact. 

Back  of  such  a  choir  the  church  must  have  supervisory 
organization.  If  the  pastor  has  the  strength,  he  may  be 
his  own  music  committee,  and  look  after  the  musical  in- 
terests of  the  church  in  person.  But  if  he  lacks  the 
necessary  information  and  training,  as  well  as  time  and 
strength,  it  may  be  well  to  have  a  music  committee  of 


THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  CHOIR      263 

one  or  three  who  shall  be  held  responsible  for  the  gen- 
eral conduct  of  the  music  of  the  public  service. 

If  such  a  music  committee  is  not  itself  musical,  in  the 
professional  sense  of  the  word,  it  will  not  greatly  matter. 
It  should,  however,  consist  of  persons  who  are  tactful  and 
considerate,  fertile  in  resources  and  plans,  not  easily  dis- 
couraged, sufficiently  versed  in  music  to  know  good  work 
when  they  hear  it,  and  yet  imbued  with  a  practical  sense 
of  music  that  shall  assure  their  cooperation  with  the  plans 
of  the  pastor. 

Nevertheless,  if  the  pastor  has  an  energetic,  faithful,  and 
discreet  choir  leader,  who  will  accept  responsibility  for  all 
phases  of  the  musical  service,  the  music  committee  can 
be  dispensed  with  as  a  needless  piece  of  machinery.  This 
leader  should  be  directly  responsible  to  the  pastor  and  to 
the  official  board  or  vestry  by  whom  he  ought  to  be  ap- 
pointed and  clothed  with  all  necessary  authority. 


THE  CHOIR  DIRECTOR 

THE  real  organizing  force  in  any  body  of  singers 
is  its  musical  director ;  without  him  it  is  simply 
a  mob.  Under  his  direction,  it  largely  becomes 
an  expression  of  his  personality,  with  his  faults  or  his 
virtues.  If  he  is  indifferent,  or  listless,  it  will  be  lacking 
in  spirit  and  sharpness  of  attack ;  if  he  is  slipshod  and 
lacking  in  conscientiousness,  its  work  will  be  incorrect 
and  ragged ;  if  he  is  ignorant  and  inefficient,  the  chorus 
will  blunder  and  discredit  itself  in  like  measure ;  if  he  is 
wanting  in  musical  feeling  and  perception,  its  interpreta- 
tion will  be  inadequate  and  unsatisfactory.  But  if  he  is 
full  of  enthusiasm  and  courage,  exact  in  his  knowledge  of 
music,  and  fastidious  in  every  mechanical  detail,  if  he  is 
brimful  of  musical  feeling,  quick  to  apprehend  the  com- 
poser's purpose  and  to  see  possibilities  of  new  and  varied 
interpretations  of  music  in  hand,  the  work  of  the  chorus 
will  rise  to  the  same  high  plane  of  excellence. 

In  any  choir,  therefore,  the  leader  is  the  key  to  the 
situation,  and  the  choice  should  be  made  with  the  greatest 
care.  It  may  be  worth  while  to  emphasize  the  traits  that 
are  needed  to  round  out  an  ideal  choir  leader.  Some  of 
them  are  absolutely  indispensable  to  any  measure  of  suc- 
cess, others  are  desirable,  but  not  essential. 

The  choir  leader  must  needs  be  a  man  of  decision  of 
character.  No  merely  nice  man,  no  inoffensive,  nega- 
tively good  fellow  will  do ;  he  must  be  a  leader  among 

264 


THE  CHOIE  DIEECTOE  265 

men  by  native  impulse  and  instinct.  Instinctive  defer- 
ence to  the  will  or  wishes  of  others,  pleasing  as  such  a 
trait  may  be  in  ordinary  social  life,  is  a  serious  fault  in  a 
choir  leader.  He  must  have  ideas  of  his  own  and  be  im- 
pressed that  they  are  just  right  and  absolutely  essential 
to  success.  He  must  be  reasonably  sure  of  his  opinion 
regarding  every  phase  of  choir  work.  Decision  is  the 
great  virtue  that  counts  in  his  position,  and  he  had  better 
have  too  much  than  too  little,  if  other  virtues  are  present 
in  the  same  proportion.  He  is  definitely  responsible  for 
the  work  of  the  choir,  and  the  choir  must  accept  his  de- 
cisions in  musical  matters  as  final,  else  there  will  be  end- 
less discussion,  degenerating  into  wrangling  and  strife, 
and  a  helpless  disorganization  fatal  to  all  good  work. 

The  choir  leader  must  be  a  man  of  discretion  and  in- 
telligence. Second  only  to  the  minister  in  his  influence 
on  the  impressiveness  and  effectiveness  of  the  church 
service,  he  needs  to  be  judicious  in  adapting  the  means 
he  controls  in  such  a  way  as  to  produce  the  desired  end. 
He  ought  to  be  responsive  to  the  ideas  of  his  pastor  and 
know  how  to  help  and  not  to  hinder  his  larger  plans. 
Dealing  with  the  varied  human  nature  gathered  in  his 
choir,  the  focus  of  all  its  social  as  well  as  its  musical  in- 
terest, he  needs  to  be  a  strategist  of  no  mean  order,  and 
a  diplomatist  full  of  resources,  to  get  out  of  it  the  best 
results  with  the  least  possible  friction  and  the  largest  pos- 
sible enthusiasm.  A  man  of  decision,  he  must  know  how 
to  decide  wisely,  and,  while  guiding  with  firmness,  to  let 
the  choir  see  and  feel  only  kindliness  and  tact. 

Another  part  of  the  choir  leader's  fitness  is  large 
musical  capacity  and  reasonably  complete  musical  train- 
ing. At  the  very  least,  he  should  be  superior  to  his 
singers  in  musical  information  and  insight.     It  is  hard 


266  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

for  sensitive  singers  to  endure  the  authority  of  any  one 
with  less  ability  and  instruction  than  themselves.  The 
very  basis  of  respect  and  authority  is  wanting.  Lack  of 
musical  knowledge  and  insight,  whether  in  mechanical 
detail  or  the  larger  interpretation,  does  grievous  harm  to 
the  choir,  leading  to  bad  habits,  misunderstandings,  and 
utter  inefficiency.  New  points  are  constantly  coming  up 
for  correction,  new  details  of  typography  and  composer's 
directions,  where  ignorance  would  utterly  defeat  the 
writer's  purpose  and  neutralize  the  effect  of  the  music 
upon  the  congregation.  An  ignorant  man,  out  of  the 
very  emptiness  of  his  ignorance,  will  evolve  ideas  and 
notions  regarding  the  music  in  hand  that  would  make 
the  choir  the  laughing-stock  of  better  informed  people. 
No  choir  leader  can  know  too  much ;  he  may  know  alto- 
gether too  little. 

If  the  director  has  the  necessary  knowledge  and  skill 
to  train  his  choir  vocally,  much  better  artistic  results  may 
be  expected.  He  ought  to  know  at  least  enough  about 
the  human  voice  to  secure  a  good  quality  of  tone  out  of 
his  singers  and  to  prevent  his  abuse  of  the  voices  en- 
trusted to  his  direction. 

Need  I  insist  that  the  choir  director,  who  is  also 
the  responsible  congregational  precentor,  should  know 
his  hymnal  well  in  all  its  aspects  ?  He  should  have  a 
strong  sense  of  literary  and  lyric  values  in  hymns,  and  be 
keenly  susceptible  to  their  spiritual  appeal.  He  cannot 
hope  to  teach  his  choir  to  render  them  intelligently  and 
effectually  without  such  a  grasp  of  their  meaning.  He 
must  be  able  to  discriminate  between  what  is  simply  good 
music  and  really  good  and  useful  congregational  tunes,  in 
order  that  his  selection  may  be  practicable.  Most  choir 
directors  are  very  indifferent  to  this  phase  of  their  work, 


THE  CHOIE  DIEECTOE  267 

and  should  be  kindly  reminded  of  the  opportunity  for 
usefulness  they  are  missing. 

The  choir  leader  must  be  a  practical  man.  He  must 
have  a  definite  religious  and  devotional  aim :  the  inspira- 
tion and  help  of  the  listening  congregation.  He  must 
not  be  an  artistic  egoist,  insisting  that  only  the  music  he 
personally  enjoys  and  approves  shall  be  rendered.  He 
must  not  be  a  musical  idealist  with  near-sighted  vision 
only  for  the  standard  of  music  he  has  set  up,  but  a  prac- 
tical worker,  using  music  as  a  means  to  a  higher  end. 
He  must  study  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  needs  of  his 
people.  This  will  determine  his  choice  of  music,  his 
selection  of  singers,  his  style  of  rendition,  his  relation  to 
the  pastor  and  congregation. 

Whatever  else  the  choir  leader  may  be,  he  must  be  a 
Christian.  Only  a  spiritual  man,  who  personally  knows 
what  devotion  towards  God  is,  can  properly  guide  the 
musical  expression  of  the  worship  of  both  choir  and  con- 
gregation. As  well  set  a  blind  man  to  oversee  the  mural 
decorations  of  the  church,  as  to  expect  a  man  who  cannot 
pray,  and  who  has  no  sense  of  the  immediate  presence  of 
God  in  His  temple,  to  lead  the  expression  of  the  religious 
emotions  of  truly  devout  people.  No,  the  music  is  not 
conventional  and  cannot  be  managed  by  conventional 
prescription.  When  it  is  so  conceived,  it  becomes  apples 
of  Sodom  to  the  true  worshipper,  filling  his  mouth  with 
dust  and  ashes.  No  unreligious  man  has  any  right  to 
preside  in  a  choir  loft;  he  is  guilty  of  sacrilege  and 
blasphemy  in  idly  taking  upon  his  lips  the  sacred  songs 
that  are  supposed  to  reach  the  ears  of  God.  Better  take 
an  inferior  leader  with  a  devout  mind  than  his  superior 
without  it. 

The  choir  leader  has   no  sinecure,  if  he  does  all  he 


268  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

ought  to  do  and  does  it  well.  He  has  the  responsibility 
for  the  general  management  of  the  church's  music  and 
must  do  all  its  planning  in  this  line.  He  must  know  the 
needs  of  the  various  occasions  that  arise,  whether  the 
church  year  is  strictly  observed  or  not.  The  plans  of  the 
minister  are  to  be  learned  and  studied,  in  order  that  the 
choir's  share  of  the  program  may  be  strictly  in  line  with 
the  forward  movement  of  the  church.  This  one  point  of 
nice  adaptation  to  the  general  work  of  the  congregation 
requires  more  careful  thought  than  many  leaders  give  to 
all  their  work. 

The  selection  of  music  to  meet  these  recognized  needs 
is  no  small  task.  Of  course  the  choir  has  its  anthem 
books,  choir  journals,  and  octavos,  but  even  these,  rich  as 
they  may  be,  do  not  always  furnish  the  exact  number  re- 
quired for  the  pastor's  program  or  the  particular  exigency 
of  the  situation.  Then  there  must  be  search  and  examina- 
tion of  music  until  the  appropriate  number  is  found. 
Perhaps  a  new  supply  of  music  is  needed,  new  books  are 
to  be  provided,  a  suitable  journal  is  to  be  selected,  a  fresh 
supply  of  octavos  to  be  chosen.  In  order  to  have  the 
widest  range  of  selection,  he  must  know  something  of  all 
the  leading  publishers  of  sacred  music  and  the  styles  and 
grades  of  difficulty  they  represent.  But  all  this  means 
study  of  the  situation  and  careful  deliberation  with  the 
true  purpose  of  church  music  clearly  in  view. 

Then  the  choir  leader  must  keep  close  watch  on  the 
musical  people  of  his  congregation.  He  must  be  a  dis- 
coverer of  talent  and  voice,  however  unpretentious  or 
unheralded.  He  ought  to  watch  the  children  in  the  Sun- 
day-school, for  an  occasional  boy  soprano  or  alto  may  be 
found  who  will  be  a  valuable  help  in  his  choir,  not  to  speak 
of  the  young  women  that  have  budding  voices  that  need 


THE  CHOIK  DIRECTOR  269 

to  be  encouraged  and  developed,  or  of  the  boys  whose 
voices  are  changing  into  something  desirable  for  the 
chorus  choir. 

Certainly,  the  choir  leader  must  be  something  of  a 
mixer  to  find  out  these  unfledged  choir  singers  and  train 
them  for  future  usefulness,  but  how  can  a  man  know  the 
needs  of  a  people  with  whom  he  does  not  mingle  ?  He 
needs  to  know  the  several  social  and  religious  strata 
which  compose  his  congregation  in  order  that  he  may 
secure  general  cooperation  and  not  ignorantly  or  thought- 
lessly call  attention  to  the  various  lines  of  cleavage  which 
are  usually  the  chief  danger  in  the  American  voluntary 
church.  This  close  touch  with  all  phases  of  the  church's 
life  will  help  him  to  avoid  many  of  the  pitfalls  which  lie 
in  his  way  in  the  conduct  of  the  choir  itself,  and  which 
often  precipitate  unnecessary  contention  and  strife. 

Then  he  ought  to  know  the  exact  capacity  of  the  sev- 
eral singers  in  his  choir,  unbiased  in  his  judgment  by  any 
personal  likes  or  dislikes.  Absolute  justice  should  be 
observed  in  this  particular,  as  it  occasionally  happens  that 
very  nice  people  have  poor  voices,  and  some  disagreeable 
persons  have  good  ones.  It  may  be  well  to  make  ex- 
cuses for  testing  privately  the  value  of  some  voices  re- 
garding which  there  is  an  uncertainty,  as  the  time  of  the 
choir  should  not  be  wasted  on  such  rehearsals,  nor  the 
feelings  of  unsuccessful  solo  aspirants  needlessly  wounded. 

In  a  volunteer  choir  whose  members  sing  gratuitously, 
there  may  be  need  of  a  little  more  social  recognition  of 
the  singers  than  is  required  in  a  paid  choir.  Kind  words 
from  the  leader,  inquiries  after  friends,  sympathy  in  sor- 
row, congratulations  over  some  happy  event,  a  kindly  jest, 
a  merry  remark,  all  have  their  value  in  binding  the  choir 
together.     At  the  little  social  gatherings  of  the  choir  the 


270  PKACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

choir  leader  will  be  ex  officio  master  of  ceremonies.  An 
occasional  round  of  social  duties  thus  becomes  no  small 
part  of  the  work  of  the  leader. 

It  is  often  possible  to  extend  the  range  of  his  social 
activities  to  the  outside  world  and  to  other  churches.  In 
many  communities  it  would  prove  an  inspiration  to  all 
the  churches,  if  their  several  choirs  occasionally  united  on 
some  more  ambitious  program  than  any  one  choir  would 
care  to  attempt.  A  fraternal  feeling  between  the  several 
choir  leaders  would  make  such  an  enterprise  possible. 
Quite  frequently  there  are  other  lines  of  work,  such  as 
Y.  M.  C.  A.,  W.  C.  A.,  hospitals,  etc.,  that  may  be  helped  in 
one  way  or  another.  In  all  these  the  individual  choir 
leader  must  be  the  one  to  take  the  initiative. 

Yes,  the  choir  leader  should  be  the  musical  pastor,  with 
the  same  responsibility  for  the  congregation  he  serves, 
and  for  the  community  in  which  he  lives,  as  has  the  pas- 
tor-in-chief, and  only  in  this  attitude  can  he  realize  the 
full  measure  of  his  possibilities  of  usefulness. 

Whatever  the  leader's  geniality  may  be  in  his  personal 
relations  to  the  singers,  when  he  takes  the  baton  to  lead 
he  becomes  the  rigid  disciplinarian,  with  an  eye  single  to 
the  best  obtainable  musical  and  spiritual  results.  There 
should  be  an  added  dignity  of  office,  a  sense  of  the  serious- 
ness of  the  work  to  be  done,  an  air  of  attending  strictly 
to  the  business  in  hand,  that  will  have  great  moral  value 
in  keeping  the  choir  under  control.  The  larger  the  choir, 
the  more  important  this  becomes,  if  good  discipline  is  to 
be  maintained.  In  quartets  or  octets  this  formal  attitude 
may  be  unnecessary,  but  even  in  them  the  essence  of  au- 
thority and  earnestness  of  purpose  is  needed  for  the  best 
work.  A  careless,  flippant  air  on  the  part  of  the  leader 
is  demoralizing  to  the  choir  and  invites  criticism  and  im- 


THE  CHOIE  DIEECTOR  271 

pertinence.  There  need  be  no  offensiveness  in  his  man- 
ner, no  cessation  of  kindliness  or  loss  of  courtesy ;  but 
through  it  all  the  choir  should  realize  that  the  leader  pro- 
poses to  do  the  utmost  possible  work  in  the  shortest  pos- 
sible time. 

The  leader  should  have  a  very  definite  understanding 
that  he  is  to  be  entirely  free  to  criticise  his  choir,  either 
collectively  or  individually,  as  need  may  require,  without 
personal  offense  being  taken.  That  is  his  particular 
business,  and  any  singer,  who  is  so  sensitive  that  he  can 
not  endure  it,  should  withdraw  from  the  choir,  as  too 
fragile  of  mould  to  do  actual  service  in  the  world.  At  the 
same  time,  the  leader  is  under  bonds  not  to  allow  the 
slightest  element  of  personal  feeling  to  enter  into  his  cor- 
rection. Scolding  or  harshness  is  utterly  out  of  place. 
A  kind,  calm  suggestion  will  usually  do  better  service 
than  a  harsh  reflection  on  a  singer's  lack  of  ability  or 
slowness  of  perception.  A  singer  who  really  needs  sharp 
and  unkindprodding,  because  of  indifference,  carelessness, 
or  worse,  should  be  replaced  by  some  one  else  at  the  first 
opportunity,  as  he  flats  the  note  of  kindliness  in  the 
choir. 

Where  there  is  evident  in  a  singer  a  serious  purpose  to 
do  all  that  is  possible,  but  a  lack  of  quickness,  or  capacity, 
the  leader  should  cultivate  infinite  patience.  It  is  painful 
enough  for  a  singer  to  butt  his  head  against  the  stone 
wall  of  his  limited  apprehension  or  power,  without  being 
publicly  pilloried  by  the  sarcasm  or  abuse  of  the  leader. 
He  probably  will  be  helped  by  a  little  encouragement  or 
praise,  while  sharp  words  will  depress  his  nerve. 

Not  only  must  the  leader  be  patient  himself,  but  he 
must  develop  the  same  grace  in  his  singers,  so  that  they 
will  be  content  to  repeat  again  and  again  a  passage  over 


272  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

which  some  less  gifted  one  of  their  number  is  stumbling. 
Perhaps  the  best  way  to  secure  this  is  to  quietly  take  it 
for  granted  and  to  express  amazement  should  any  of  the 
singers  manifest  a  lack  of  it.  Should  one  of  the  habit- 
ually impatient  members  of  the  choir  have  difficulty,  the 
need  of  patience  may  then  be  commented  upon  kindly 
and  impersonally,  and  the  needed  lesson  so  impressed. 

Of  course,  this  patience  must  not  degenerate  into  indif- 
ference and  sloth.  The  leader  should  spur  his  choir  to 
the  very  quick,  in  order  to  get  as  much  out  of  them  as  is 
at  all  possible  during  the  short  weekly  rehearsal.  Pa- 
tience that  allows  dawdling  is  a  virtue  down  at  the  heels, 
without  grace  or  usefulness.  The  golden  mean  should 
be  sought.  Rasping,  ranting,  scolding,  on  the  one  hand, 
should  be  avoided  as  unworthy  a  Christian  gentleman, 
and  on  the  other,  patience,  when  it  ceases  to  be  a  virtue, 
should  no  longer  be  cherished. 

The  choir  leader  must  see  that  the  needed  work  is 
done  and  done  right.  The  good  nature  and  sympathy, 
that  prevent  a  leader  from  keeping  a  choir  practicing  un- 
til it  has  really  learned  its  music,  are  a  weakness  that  de- 
serves contempt.  He  may  use  many  ways  of  keeping 
them  in  good  humour  and  full  of  courage.  Tell  them  a 
good  story  that  is  apropos,  flatter  them  to  the  top  of  their 
bent,  scold  them  in  a  jolly  way,  hold  them  to  their  work 
by  sheer  force  of  will, — but  the  music  must  be  studied 
with  spirited  attention  until  it  is  mastered.  Nothing  else 
will  do,  and  nothing  else  should  be  considered,  no  matter 
how  often  some  passages  must  be  reiterated,  no  matter 
if  the  anthem  is  repeated  a  score  of  times.  Voices  may 
become  hoarse  or  may  even  flat ;  a  few  minutes  of  rest 
will  wonderfully  relieve  that,  and  the  work  should  then 
go  steadily  on  to  a  complete  finish. 


THE  CHOIE  DIEECTOR  273 

The  choir  leader  should  himself  cherish  high  ideals  of 
work,  and  impress  them  on  his  singers  until  they  make 
it  a  matter  of  conscience  as  well  as  of  pride  to  make  their 
share  of  the  divine  service  the  very  best  attainable.  Past 
failures  may  be  kindly  discussed  and  their  causes  pointed 
out.  The  selection  of  the  music  may  have  been  at  fault, 
the  practice  insufficient,  the  choir  indifferent  and  listless 
during  service ;  there  may  have  been  a  lack  of  religious 
feeling,  or  at  some  critical  point  one  or  the  other  of  the 
parts  may  have  been  careless  and  caused  a  break ;  whatever 
the  weakness  it  should  be  dispassionately  analyzed  and 
the  ideals  of  good  singing  raised. 

If  the  choir  leader's  sense  of  finish  and  completeness 
be  keen,  the  choir  will  soon  rise  to  its  requirements  and 
will  take  pleasure  in  realizing  his  ideals.  They  will 
learn  to  sing  pianissimo  without  flatting  or  muffling  the 
tones,  or  fortissimo  without  shrieking.  They  will  retard 
or  accelerate  the  movement  together,  and  their  crescendos 
and  diminuendos  will  be  smoothly  and  intelligently  done. 
Staccato  and  legato  will  have  an  actual  meaning,  and  a 
swell  will  be  something  more  than  an  irregular  burst  of 
noise.  They  will  not  gasp  for  breath  in  the  midst  of  a 
musical  phrase,  nor  sing  all  the  rests.  They  will  watch 
their  leader  and  catch  his  interpretation  from  the  move- 
ment of  his  hands  and  the  expression  of  his  face.  But 
impressing  these  ideals  is  not  the  work  of  a  single  re- 
hearsal, but  of  scores  and  even  hundreds  of  them. 

The  choir's  ideals  of  the  music  to  be  rendered  should 
also  be  given  direction  by  the  choir  leader.  This  is  par- 
ticularly the  case  where  low  ideals  exist.  I  believe 
that  an  intelligent  choir  will  learn  to  appreciate  a  very 
high  grade  of  music.  While  the  needs  of  the  congrega- 
tion should  have  the  determining  voice,  the  choir  should 


274  PRACTICAL  CBXTXH  MrSIC 

be  able  to  render  and  appreciate  something  better  than 
an  average  congregation  enjoys,  and  its  right  at  least 
occasionally  to  please  itself  should  be  asserted.  A  broad, 
catholic  taste,  that  will  enjoy  both  Emerson  and  Buck,  is 
the  desirable  culmination  of  the  proper  training  of  a  choir 
in  this  matter. 

After  all,  nothing  counts  in  a  choir  leader  with  his 
choir  quite  so  much  as  sheer  manliness.  Sincerity, 
straightforwardness,  unswerving  justice,  consideration  for 
others,  ::r.5::entiousness  in  all  phases  of  his  work,  will 
have  the  right  of  way  as  long  as  the  world  stands  ;  and 
the  choir  leader  who  possesses  these  traits  to  any  con- 
siderable extent  may  be  sure  of  the  respect  and  good- 
will, and  hence  of  the  obedience,  of  his  singers. 


VI 

THE  ORGANIST 

ONLY  second  to  the  choir  director  is  the  organ- 
ist. He  should  be  a  musician  by  the  grace  of 
God  as  well  as  by  the  grace  of  practice.  Dr. 
Havergal  well  says  he  should  have  "  besides  fingers  and 
feet,  a  soul."  Whatever  his  instrument,  he  ought  to  be 
master  of  its  resources,  not  only  for  the  sake  of  his  own 
solo  playing,  but  for  that  of  the  accompaniment  of  the 
choir  as  well.  If  he  has  interpretative  insight,  he  can 
greatly  aid  the  leader  in  giving  the  choir  a  correct  idea 
of  the  needed  expression  of  a  piece.  He  ought,  of  course, 
to  be  subordinate  to  the  leader,  with  whom  he  should  be 
on  most  cordial  terms,  as  friction  between  these  leaders 
works  unceasing  mischief.  It  is  no  small  privilege  to 
have  a  good  organist,  one  who  can  subordinate  himself 
to  those  above  him  cheerfully  and  intelligently,  and  yet 
in  his  own  domain  can  contribute  by  his  skill  and  taste 
to  the  general  result  that  is  sought.  Such  an  organist 
will  not  only  be  a  large  determining  factor  in  the  success 
of  the  choir  but  also  of  the  congregational  singing. 

If  he  is  slipshod,  careless,  lazy,  unintelligent,  and  with- 
out musical  sense,  he  is  a  regular  u  Old  Man  of  the  Sea  " 
about  the  neck  of  the  choir,  marring  their  finest  work 
and  discouraging  every  worthy  ambition.  He  is  late  at 
rehearsals,  and  keeps  the  choir  full  of  apprehension  at  the 
service  for  fear  he  will  be  absent  when  the  service  begins ; 
he  pulls  out  all  the  stops  and  drowns  out  the  soloists  with 

275 


276  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

his  accompaniments ;  he  never  plays  an  anthem  twice 
the  same  way,  bringing  out  fortissimos  where  pianis- 
sirnos  are  indicated,  and  closing  the  swell  where  a  cres- 
cendo is  expected.  He  strikes  flats  where  sharps  are 
indicated  on  cue  notes  and  throws  the  choir  into  con- 
fusion ;  he  starts  too  soon  or  too  late ;  he  misunderstands 
the  plain  directions  of  the  leader  and  begins  the  repeti- 
tion of  a  passage  in  practice  at  the  wrong  place ;  he  is  a 
general  nuisance  at  rehearsal,  and  at  public  service  a 
thorn  in  the  side  of  the  leader  and  of  the  choir.  Woe  to 
the  occasional  choir  that  has  such  a  burden  to  bear ! 

But  if  he  is  prompt  and  reliable,  industrious  and  con- 
scientious, full  of  musical  feeling  and  sense  of  fitness ;  if 
he  is  a  help  to  the  soloist  and  an  inspiring  interpreter  to 
the  choir ;  if  he  is  full  of  resources  and  suggestions  in 
unexpected  emergencies,  and  able  to  gloss  over  deficien- 
cies in  public  performances ;  if  he  is  good-natured  and 
clever,  always  genial  and  ready  to  help,  be  sure  he  is 
worth  his  weight  in  gold,  and  let  him  feel  that  he 
is  properly  valued  and  appreciated.  If  he  is  a  volun- 
tary worker,  a  Christmas  purse  will  be  a  practical  com- 
pliment that  cannot  be  misunderstood.  In  any  case,  a 
kind  hand  on  the  arm  or  shoulder,  a  smiling  face  looking 
into  his,  and  a  phrase,  "  How  you  can  make  that  organ 
talk ! "  or  "  I  couldn't  have  gotten  my  part  right  to-night 
without  your  playing," — any  kind  words  of  sincere  ap- 
preciation— will  put  new  enthusiasm  and  courage  into  his 
heart.  Give  him  just  as  much  praise  as  he  can  stand, — 
no  more. 

In  some  cases  it  may  be  wise  to  combine  the  offices  of 
choir  director  and  organist  in  one  person,  but  usually 
each  has  enough  to  do  to  keep  one  man  busy.  An  or- 
ganist has  no  opportunity  for  the  direct  personal  relation 


THE  ORGANIST  277 

to  the  congregation  a  director  ought  to  have.  With  a 
large  share  of  his  attention  devoted  to  his  instrument,  he 
cannot  watch  the  individual  singers  and  parts  with  the 
care  they  usually  demand.  Besides  the  instrument  covers 
the  voices  of  the  singers  to  such  a  degree  that  he  cannot 
detect  the  false  notes.  Moreover,  the  organist  usually  is 
instrumental  in  his  training  and  sympathies,  and  rarely  is 
able  to  train  a  choir  well.  Still  less  is  he  able,  either  by 
training  or  opportunity,  to  lead  and  assist  in  the  congre- 
gational singing  which  is  so  important  a  part  of  the  choir 
leader's  work.  On  the  other  hand,  he  has  the  marked 
advantage  of  being  able  to  indicate  exactly  the  time  and 
expression  he  desires  to  give  the  music  in  hand,  and 
to  gloss  over  the  imperfections  of  the  choir  or  of  the 
soloists. 


VII 

THE  CHOIR  REHEARSAL 

HAVING  considered  the  personnel  of  the  choir 
and  its  organization,  let  us  now  take  up  its 
varied  activities.  There  is  no  more  important 
phase  of  its  work  than  its  rehearsal.  Usually  this  should 
be  held  in  the  church,  although  there  may  be  good  rea- 
sons for  holding  it  elsewhere.  If  a  small  room  is  avail- 
able in  the  church  edifice,  it  may  be  furnished  with  a 
stove,  chairs,  and  a  piano  for  rehearsals  in  cold  weather 
when  it  is  difficult  to  heat  the  choir  loft.  If  the  church 
cannot  be  properly  heated,  the  choir  had  better  meet  in 
a  private  house.  It  is  a  crime  to  ask  a  choir  to  sing  in  a 
cold  room  where  every  breath  taken  in  singing  throws 
cold  air  upon  the  excited  and  susceptible  air  passages  in 
head  and  throat.  How  often  the  Sunday's  work  is  nearly 
ruined  by  the  illness  of  important  singers  who  caught 
cold  at  choir  rehearsal.  Rehearsal  at  private  homes  has 
some  social  advantages  that  are  valuable.  The  gathering 
is  less  official  and  more  personal  and  there  is  greater 
social  freedom.  It  may  be  well  to  have  a  portable  organ 
for  this  purpose,  as  pianos  are  not  always  available  or  in 
tune. 

The  ideal  rehearsal  begins  promptly  on  time.  No 
matter  what  singers  are  absent,  no  matter  if  the  organist 
is  absent,  begin  on  time.  If  no  substitute  organist  is  at 
hand,  sing  without  an  instrument.     It  is  excellent  train- 

278 


THE  CHOIE  EEHEAESAL  279 

ing.  In  a  short  time  you  will  have  little  trouble  with 
tardiness,  and  much  valuable  time  will  be  saved. 

At  the  rap  of  the  baton  the  choir  instantly  takes  its 
place  in  proper  order.  While  it  is  not  essential,  in  gen- 
eral it  is  better  to  have  the  sopranos  and  tenors  to  the 
right  of  the  leader,  and  the  altos  and  basses  to  the  left. 
The  opposite  arrangement  is  really  the  traditional  one, 
but  there  is  no  special  reason  for  it  in  ordinary  choir 
work.  Perhaps  it  is  because  I  have  been  an  organist,  but 
I  like  to  have  the  sopranos  at  my  right  for  the  same  rea- 
son that  the  higher  tones  of  the  keyboard  are  at  the 
player's  right !  Where  the  men  are  few,  they  may  be  put 
in  front  and  so  help  the  balance  of  parts.  The  rule  hav- 
ing been  made,  let  it  be  inflexibly  adhered  to  as  avoiding 
waste  of  time  in  discussion  and  readjustment.  If  the 
chorus  is  well  organized,  the  firsts  and  seconds  in  each 
part  should  sit  separately,  so  that  in  case  of  passages  for 
men's  and  women's  voices  they  may  be  sung  without 
stopping  a  moment  for  reorganization. 

It  is  not  usual  to  begin  a  rehearsal  with  prayer,  but,  if 
it  be  devout  and  genuine,  it  ought  to  be  a  great  help  in 
securing  the  right  spiritual  purpose  in  the  choir.  The 
evil  spirit  of  secularity,  which  does  so  much  to  rob  choirs 
of  their  practical  efficiency,  would  be  banished  by  such  a 
recognition  of  the  religious  purpose  of  the  evening's 
work.  The  great  chorus  choir  of  the  Chicago  Avenue 
Church  not  only  opens  its  rehearsals  with  prayer,  but 
closes  with  a  season  of  devotion.  In  any  chorus  choir  of 
twelve  voices  and  more  such  a  devotional  exercise  would 
be  entirely  in  place. 

But  it  is  better  not  to  have  any  prayer,  if  it  is  purely 
mechanical  and  perfunctory.  There  is  already  too  much 
singing  and  praying,  when  the  heart  is  far  from  God. 


280  PEACTICAL  CHUBCH  MUSIC 

Yet,  if  the  choir  itself  is  not  spiritually  minded,  the  pastor 
may  attend  in  person  and  by  his  own  opening  prayer 
kindle  the  lacking  spiritual  interest. 

Of  course,  the  selections  to  be  practiced  are  already 
made  and  both  leader  and  organist  have  them  well  in 
hand.  The  difficult  places  in  each  of  the  several  parts 
have  been  noted  and  the  exact  measures  that  need  to  be 
rehearsed  over  and  over  again  exactly  determined,  so  that 
no  time  may  be  wasted  in  singing  over  measures  that  are 
easy.  If  there  are  solos,  the  persons  who  are  to  sing 
them  have  been  selected,  and,  if  they  do  not  read  music 
well,  have  been  notified  of  their  appointment  in  order 
that  they  may  be  prepared  with  their  parts. 

Let  me  stop  a  moment  at  this  point  to  emphasize  that 
the  director's  beating  of  time  and  other  signals  should  be 
absolutely  clear  to  the  choir.  A  good  many  leaders 
make  a  lot  of  unmeaning  gesticulations  that  not  only 
have  no  value  in  themselves,  but  actually  submerge  the 
few  that  have.  The  right  hand  should  be  used  to  beat 
the  time, — down,  left,  right,  up,  or  down,  left,  up,  etc.,  as 
the  case  may  be.  Where  the  rhythm  is  involved  the 
beats  may  be  divided,  giving  two  strokes  to  each  beat. 
But  this  should  be  done  only  in  certain  involved  phrases, 
not  as  a  general  rule.  I  have  noticed  lately  among 
"  smart  "  leaders  a  fashion  of  beating  time  in  a  series  of 
upward  strokes  ;  this  is  very  confusing  and  unscientific. 
I  presume  it  is  a  mere  passing  "  smart-alec-ism  "  !  The 
left  hand  should  indicate  the  force  by  a  series  of  signals 
which  should  be  thoroughly  worked  out  by  the  director 
and  clearly  understood  by  the  choir. 

The  attention  of  the  choir  having  been  won  and  the 
selection  having  been  announced,  the  organist  will  pro- 
ceed to  play  it  through  fairly  softly  from  beginning  to 


THE  CHOIE  EEIIEAESAL  281 

end,  accompanied  by  such  comments  from  the  leader  as 
to  time  and  force  as  may  seem  necessary.  It  may  be 
well  occasionally  to  have  the  organist  repeat  passages 
that  are  difficult  or  whose  rhythm  or  expression  need 
special  attention.  The  chief  difficulty  in  this  procedure 
in  most  choirs  is  that  of  securing  the  attention  of  the 
choir  to  the  organist's  playing.  Unless  discipline  is 
rigidly  insisted  upon,  the  singers  will  talk  and  lose  the 
whole  value  of  the  organist's  rehearsal  of  the  piece.  The 
director  should  hold  their  attention  by  his  minute  expla- 
nations as  the  playing  proceeds. 

It  may  be  desirable  to  have  the  choir,  either  as  a  whole 
or  in  its  several  parts,  try  some  of  the  more  difficult  pas- 
sages in  order  to  conquer  the  difficulties  in  advance.  In 
this  way  the  choir  gets  a  clear  idea  of  the  general  move- 
ment and  spirit  of  the  anthem,  knows  just  exactly  what 
to  expect  in  the  way  of  difficulties,  and  has  already 
partially  solved  the  problems  presented.  A  clear  mental 
picture  of  what  is  to  be  accomplished  is  really  half  the 
battle,  whether  the  singers  read  notes  or  not.  Then  let 
the  choir  as  a  whole  take  up  the  anthem  and  sing  it 
through.  They  may  break  down  again  and  again  ;  let 
them  pick  themselves  up  and  go  on  until  the  whole  has 
been  sung.  By  this  time  both  director  and  choir  will 
know  exactly  where  the  most  drill  is  necessary. 

It  may  be  that  certain  parts  have  difficult  passages  that 
need  to  be  studied  separately.  This  should  be  done,  but 
as  quickly  as  possible,  lest  the  other  singers  become  list- 
less and  uninterested.  Better  call  upon  the  other  parts  to 
sing  the  difficult  phrase  or  passage  as  a  unison,  if  the  dif- 
ficulty requires  undue  time.  That  will  act  as  a  spur  to 
the  singers  who  are  lagging.  Time  should  not  be  wasted 
on  the  easy  parts,  but  every  energy  concentrated  on  the 


282  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

halting  phrases.  When  these  have  been  taken  up  one  by 
one  and  mastered,  the  whole  should  be  sung  again  from 
beginning  to  end.  The  progress  that  will  have  been 
made  will  elate  the  choir  and  reward  them  for  all  their 
work. 

Now  that  the  mechanical  obstacles  have  been  over- 
come, the  musical  sense  and  emotional  burden  of  the 
anthem  must  be  made  clear.  The  notes  now  being 
known,  the  eyes  of  the  choir  should  be  demanded  by  the 
leader  in  order  that  not  only  he  may  indicate  by  methods 
of  beating  time  and  by  signs  and  signals  previously 
agreed  upon,  but  also  have  the  singers  realize  the  varia- 
tions of  time  and  force  that  are  needed  to  bring  out  the 
idea  of  the  writers  both  of  the  music  and  of  the  text.  It 
may  be  well  to  study  the  text  with  the  choir,  emphasiz- 
ing its  varying  feeling,  in  order  that  it  may  be  expressed 
in  singing.  A  solemn  and  sincere  statement  of  the  par- 
ticular purpose  the  anthem  is  intended  to  realize  may  do 
much  to  call  out  the  proper  attitude  of  mind  on  the  part 
of  the  singers. 

At  this  point  the  leader  will  give  special  attention  to 
the  perfect  intonation  and  blending  of  the  voices  of  his 
singers.  The  singers  should  be  admonished  each  to  listen 
to  the  singing  of  the  rest  and  to  make  a  conscious  effort  to 
be  absolutely  true  in  pitch  and  quality  of  tone.  In 
chords  that  are  held,  the  choir  should  sustain  the  tone 
without  wavering,  imitating  the  steadiness  of  the  tone  of 
the  organ.  Indeed,  this  "  organ  tone  "  is  indispensable 
to  the  best  singing.  If  any  of  the  singers  are  indulging 
in  solo  affectations  and  are  so  disturbing  the  perfect  en 
semblet  this  is  the  place  to  correct  them.  Rev.  Clarence 
W.  Bispham  in  a  lecture  before  the  General  Theological 
Seminary  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  on  "  Prac- 


THE  CHOIE  EEHEAESAL  283 

tical  Suggestions  on  Church  Music"  gives  this  urgent 
counsel :  "  Never  for  a  moment  allow  whining  or 
tremolo  in  your  tenors.  It  is  a  trick  of  singing.  It  is  a 
noxious  weed."  I  presume  he  means  the  sliding  of  the 
voice  called  portamento  when  he  speaks  of  "  whining." 
It  is  only  allowable  in  cases  of  extreme  hysterical  pas- 
sion, and  should  be  rooted  out  of  a  choir  without  relent- 
ing. 

The  tremolo  is  even  more  common,  and,  if  it  were  pos- 
sible, more  vulgar  and  offensive  to  good  taste.  Singers 
who  have  this  tremolo  disease  have  no  business  in  a 
choir;  there  can  be  no  perfect  blending  of  the  voices 
where  it  is  allowed.  Organists  who  constantly  pull  out 
the  tremolo  stop,  and  violinists  and  cornetists  who  shake 
their  hands  incessantly  when  they  play,  ought  to  be  ad- 
monished that  the  best  taste  condemns  lavish  use  of  the 
tremolo  as  cheap,  tawdry,  and  vulgar. 

Now  is  the  time,  also,  to  watch  the  enunciation  of  the 
words.  The  constant  complaint  of  the  congregation  is 
that  the  words  cannot  be  understood.  If  the  singing  is 
done  for  the  benefit  of  the  hearers,  or  as  representing 
them  in  praise  before  God,  it  is  their  right  to  understand 
the  text.  After  all,  the  words  are  the  main  feature  of 
sacred  song, — the  music  being  only  incidental.  The 
leader,  therefore,  must  insist  that  the  enunciation  be  clear 
and  distinct,  with  no  gasps  in  the  middle  of  a  word,  and 
no  absurd  running  together  of  syllables  of  different  words. 
"  The  Ethiopian's  kin,"  "  the  leopard's  pots,"  "  the  con- 
secrated cross-eyed  bear,"  "  make  lean  your  hearts " 
bring  no  very  devout  ideas  to  the  intelligent  listener.  If 
the  thought  is  clearly  expressed,  the  music  will  be  all  the 
more  effective  and  helpful. 

Three-quarters  of   an  hour  should  be  spent  in  solid 


284  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

work  and  study.  There  should  be  no  foolish  gossip  of 
idle  banter  allowed  during  this  time.  The  leader  can 
have  an  occasional  merry  word  to  brighten  the  needed 
drudgery,  but  it  should  always  be  directly  on  the  work  in 
hand,  and  should  never  degenerate  into  smartness  or  un- 
pleasant personal  allusion.  Smartness  or  repartee  from 
the  singers  should  be  frowned  down  as  calculated  to  dis- 
tract attention  from  the  work  in  hand.  Everything 
should  be  business,  every  atom  of  energy  being  concen- 
trated upon  the  accomplishment  of  the  task  in  hand. 

Much  ought  to  be  done  in  three-quarters  of  an  hour  of 
such  work.  Then  a  recess  should  be  given  for  ten  min- 
utes, when  all  the  restrained  social  impulses  may  break 
out  and  everybody  have  a  pleasant,  happy  time.  Now  is 
the  time  for  gossip — innocent,  of  course, — and  kindly 
repartee.  Now  the  basses  and  sopranos,  and  the  tenors  and 
altos  can  couple  off  for  the  little  chat  that  means  so  little, 
and  yet  may  lead  to  so  much.  It  may  be  well  to  ventilate 
the  room,  if  necessary,  while  the  singers  are  moving 
about,  and  the  danger  of  taking  cold  is  reduced  to  a 
minimum. 

After  ten  minutes  of  such  diversion  the  baton  of  the 
leader  should  bring  about  immediate  order,  and  the  choir 
should  settle  down  to  another  season  of  hard  work.  Now 
the  anthems  for  the  following  Sunday  should  be  taken  up 
finally,  whether  learned  at  some  previous  rehearsal  or  dur- 
ing the  same  evening,  and  the  finishing  touches  of  com- 
plete familiarity  with  the  music  and  of  the  fine  shadings  of 
expression  given.  Now  at  last  comes  the  developing  of 
the  details :  here  a  ritardando,  there  a  sforzando,  yonder 
an  extreme  pianissimo,  in  another  phrase  a  crescendo  that 
swells  into  a  double  fortissimo.  If  the  inner  sense  of  the 
composition  has  been  apprehended  by  the  choir,  all  these 


THE  CHOIR  REHEARSAL  285 

details  will  be  easily  acquired,  as  they  will  be  the  natural 
development  and  expression  of  that  deeper  thought  and 
feeling.  To  study  these  details  one  by  one  without  ref- 
erence to  the  inner  meaning  of  the  anthem,  is  to  make  it 
a  thing  of  shreds  and  patches — a  merely  mechanical  ag^ 
gregation  of  unrelated  effects. 

There  should  be  no  impulse  to  economize  work  in  this 
part  of  the  study  of  a  selection,  as  it  is  the  final  work 
that  decides  whether  the  anthem  shall  succeed  in  its  pur- 
pose, or  prove  but  a  mechanical  filler  in  the  Sunday 
service.  Am  I  exaggerating  when  I  say  that  nine 
choirs  out  of  ten  under-practice  their  anthems  ?  There 
seems  to  be  a  feeling  that  when  once  they  have  learned 
the  notes  of  a  composition,  and  can  sing  it  in  fairly  cor- 
rect time,  the  work  is  done.  The  Creator  might  as  well 
have  stopped  in  the  creation  of  man  with  the  mere 
fashioning  of  the  body,  and  neglected  to  breathe  into  his 
nostrils  the  breath  of  life. 

When  a  choir  has  learned  to  read  an  anthem,  so  that  it 
can  strike  all  the  notes  correctly  and  all  the  parts  can 
sing  together,  no  matter  how  unusual  or  complex  their 
rhythm  or  independent  their  movement,  its  work  is  not 
even  half  done — only  a  beginning  has  been  made.  It 
then  needs  to  get  the  general  spirit,  a  sense  of  the 
underlying  feeling,  a  clear  comprehension  of  the  actual 
purpose  of  the  anthem.  Every  number,  if  it  has 
any  value  at  all,  has  a  certain  individuality  of  its  own, 
which  the  choir  must  recognize  and  express.  A  great 
many  choirs  miss  that  individuality  entirely;  their 
anthems  sound  as  restaurant  dishes  taste,  as  if  they  had 
all  been  prepared  in  the  same  pot  or  pan.  You  hear  one 
anthem  and  you  hear  all  the  rest.  A  maestoso  movement 
sounds    just  the  same   as    a  con  espressione.     Such   a 


286  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

mechanical  choir  will  drop  out  all  the  contrasts  the  com- 
poser has  sought  with  such  diligence,  and  a  gracioso  will 
be  as  heavy  as  an  a  la  chorale.  But  where  the  in- 
dividuality of  the  anthem  as  a  whole  is  recognized  and 
expressed,  and  the  relation  of  its  several  movements  and 
episodes  are  clearly  apprehended  and  marked,  the  rendi- 
tion gets  a  character,  an  effectiveness,  a  genuineness  that 
reach  the  very  heart  of  the  hearer. 

It  takes  more  steadiness  of  purpose  here  than  when 
the  merely  mechanical  difficulties  are  to  be  overcome,  for 
many  of  the  choir  will  feel  that  they  know  the  music 
and  that  further  practice  is  wasted.  But  they  should  be 
held  with  a  steady  hand  until  the  higher  result  is 
achieved.  The  leader  should  file  and  file  away  at  the 
fine  points  of  expression  until  they  sing  it  just  as  he 
wishes  to  have  it  sung.  Let  him  not  take  for  granted, 
when  they  sing  it  quite  right  once,  that  the  victory 
is  won.  He  should  have  them  sing  it  over  and  over 
again,  until  they  sing  it  right  every  time. 

When  the  choir  has  learned  the  notes  so  well  that  it 
forgets  they  exist,  when  the  inner  message  of  the  com- 
position takes  possession  of  the  hearts  and  minds  of  the 
singers,  so  that  they  sing  from  within  out,  spontaneously, 
with  genuine  emotion,  then  the  choir  has  practiced  an 
anthem  enough.  Of  course,  to  do  this  and  not  weary 
the  choir's  patience  requires  tact,  enthusiasm,  and 
amiable  persistence  of  purpose.  A  dull,  heavy,  matter- 
of-fact  manner  of  conducting  will  make  this  final  polish- 
ing exceedingly  wearisome ;  but  if  it  is  managed  with 
spirit,  filled  with  encouraging  words  of  appreciation  of 
efforts  put  forth  and  progress  made,  accompanied  by 
clear  explanation  of  just  what  is  wanted  and  why  it  is 
wanted,  this   final   polishing  process  can  be  made  the 


THE  CHOIE  EEHEAESAL  287 

most  enjoyable  part  of  the  whole  rehearsal.  Indeed,  un- 
less this  is  true,  there  is  something  wrong  with  the  leader, 
or  with  the  choir.  Six  months  of  such  steady  drilling  in 
expression  will  produce  wonderful  results  with  even  the 
most  commonplace  singers. 

When  I  speak  of  the  leader's  encouragement  and  ex- 
planations, I  do  not  mean  that  he  shall  talk  at  length  and 
waste  time  in  that  way.  A  single  enthusiastic  "  Bravo  !  " 
at  the  end  of  an  anthem  will  be  worth  more  than  a  five 
minutes'  speech.  Talk  just  enough,  but  do  not  talk  too 
much  !  Director  Talkative  has  killed  off  many  a  choir. 
It  is  not  the  number  of  words  that  count ;  it  is  the  clear 
ideas,  the  musical  and  religious  spirit,  and  the  in- 
domitable will  back  of  the  words,  that  score. 

The  poorest  work  done  by  otherwise  successful  choirs 
is  often  their  singing  of  the  hymns.  In  most  cases  the 
minister  is  responsible,  as  he  does  not  select  his  hymns 
in  time  to  give  the  choir  an  opportunity  to  practice  the 
tunes.  Even  if  the  preacher  has  not  settled  the  exact 
subject  of  his  discourse,  he  certainly  ought  to  know  the 
general  emotional  key  of  his  Sunday  services  by  Friday, 
and  so  be  able  to  select  the  hymns  harmonious  with  that 
key.  Then  the  choir  can  practice  the  hymns  for  the 
coming  Sunday  as  an  integral  part  of  the  week's 
rehearsal. 

The  minister  who  has  paralysis  of  will  and  is  unable  to 
come  to  a  decision  as  to  the  character  of  his  services, 
until  he  is  forced  to  do  so  at  the  last  moment,  or,  who  is 
too  careless  or  indifferent  to  give  early  thought  to  this 
part  of  the  service,  ought  to  confess  his  weakness  or  his 
sin  to  the  choir  leader,  and  ask  him  to  practice  from  time 
to  time  the  whole  hymnal  through,  in  order  to  be  ready 
for  any  unexpected  choice  the  procrastination  or  errant 


288  PEAOTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

fancy  of  the  preacher  may  suddenly  impose  upon  him. 
In  any  case,  it  is  a  good  thing  for  the  choir  to  know 
their  hymnal  from  end  to  end. 

In  practicing  the  hymns  three  points  ought  to  be  kept 
in  view  :  smooth  adaptation  of  the  hymn  to  its  tune, 
making  sure  of  the  proper  breathing  places  ;  proper  ex- 
pression of  the  sentiment  of  the  hymn,  without  falling 
into  a  minute  and  exaggerated  variation  of  time  and 
force  a  general  congregation  cannot  imitate ;  and  a 
proper  movement  or  speed  that  the  general  congregation 
can  comfortably  follow.  No  nervousness  of  the  organist, 
or  preference  of  the  choir  leader  in  favour  of  rapid  sing- 
ing, should  control  the  movement.  The  congregation  is 
the  dominating  factor  in  the  singing  of  the  hymns  and 
its  preferences  must  be  respected. 

It  is  distinctly  anti-devotional  to  sit  in  a  congregation 
and  listen  to  tandem  singing,  the  organist  ahead,  the 
choir  following  a  quarter  of  a  second  behind,  and  the 
congregation  trailing  on  in  the  rear  a  half  to  a  whole 
second.  The  self-assertive  vanity  of  the  organist,  of  the 
choir  leader,  or  even  of  the  whole  choir  should  be  curbed 
in  the  rehearsal.  Of  course,  there  should  be  sharp  at- 
tack and  prompt  time  without  dragging,  but  these  are 
not  at  all  incompatible  with  a  movement  that  allows  for 
a  clear  and  comfortable  enunciation  of  the  words. 

Equally  of  course,  if  an  exceptional  congregation  still 
sings  two  seconds  to  the  beat  and  drawls  its  hymns,  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  choir  to  correct  the  evil,  either  by  a  grad- 
ual increase  in  the  movement,  or  by  a  courteous  but  clear 
statement  of  the  fault  and  its  immediate  correction.  All 
this  can  be  easily  done  without  friction,  if  the  choir  gives 
the  proper  attention  to  the  hymns  in  its  weekly  re- 
hearsal. 


THE  CHOIR  REHEARSAL  289 

If  the  choir  has  been  attending  strictly  to  business  and 
has  wasted  no  time,  if  the  selections  have  been  practica- 
ble ones  within  the  capacity  of  the  choir,  it  ought  to  be 
able  to  master  two  anthems  in  a  session  of  an  hour  and 
a  half.  In  preparing  music  for  special  occasions  a  little 
more  time  may  be  used.  Ordinarily  the  limit  suggested 
should  be  insisted  upon,  as  singers  ought  not  to  be  asked  to 
use  their  voices  for  a  longer  time.  If  rehearsal  begins 
promptly  at  half-past  seven,  it  should  close  as  promptly 
at  nine.  A  few  kind  words  spoken  privately  to  soloists, 
or  to  singers  who  have  helped  by  supporting  their  par- 
ticular part,  or  of  general  praise  of  the  evening's  work, 
will  send  every  one  home  in  a  good  humour  and  with 
plenty  of  courage  for  the  coming  Sunday's  work. 


VIII 
THE  SOCIAL  LIFE  OF  THE  CHOIR 

THE  ideal  choir  is  a  sociable  choir.  Its  esprit  de 
corps  prompts  not  only  abiding  loyalty  to  the 
organization,  but  also  kindly  interest  and  good- 
will for  its  individual  members.  Musical  people  are  keyed 
so  high,  that  they  are  naturally  an  irritable  class,  easily 
offended  and  repelled.  Their  likes  and  dislikes  are  pro- 
nounced and  intense.  Their  emotions  are  easily  aroused, 
the  selfish  and  base  as  well  as  the  noble  and  exalted.  It 
follows  that  the  disintegrating  forces  are  unusually  strong, 
as  compared  with  other  organizations,  and  the  danger  of 
strife  and  disorganization  more  acute. 

Hence  one  of  the  problems  in  managing  a  choir  is  the 
development  of  the  "  tie  that  binds"  and  the  restraint  of 
the  passions  that  disperse.  Unfailing  courtesy  and  kind- 
liness during  rehearsals  and  hours  of  service  on  the  part 
of  the  leader  and  choir  alike  will  do  very  much  in  estab- 
lishing allegretto  gracioso  as  the  social  tempo ;  but  still 
more  can  be  done  by  skillful  social  management.  Plan 
to  throw  the  members  of  the  choir  together  informally  by 
quiet  suggestions  of  possible  social  combinations.  Have 
the  more  prominent  singers  call  on  the  others,  and  so  es- 
tablish social  relations. 

Special  care  should  be  had  for  the  more  modest  and 
retiring  members  who  are  in  danger  of  being  neglected, 
by  urging  their  inclusion  in  social  functions  that  occur, 
by  clearing  away  prejudices  and  adverse  prepossessions, 

290 


THE  SOCIAL  LIFE  OF  THE  CHOIR  291 

or  by  calling  out  forbearance  and  patience  where  needed. 
If  a  new  member  enters  the  choir,  it  may  require  a  little 
social  pertinacity  to  secure  for  him  or  her  the  standing 
with  older  members  that  is  so  desirable,  especially  if  the 
newcomer  is  timid  and  retiring.  The  choir  leader  can- 
not hope  to  do  this  quiet  social  work  alone.  He  needs 
the  keen  social  diplomacy  of  woman  to  help  him,  and  the 
more  there  are  of  her  willing  to  aid  in  the  development 
of  this  kindly  social  relation  in  the  choir,  the  more  certain 
is  success. 

But  this  work  under  the  surface  should  find  its  cul- 
mination in  a  more  public  way.  If  the  pastor  or  choir 
leader  is  prepared  to  do  so,  he  can  give  an  occasional  re- 
ception in  his  own  home.  In  general  these  should  be  ab- 
solutely informal  affairs,  although  at  rare  intervals  a  more 
elaborate  reception,  including  friends  of  the  choir,  or  even 
the  whole  congregation,  may  add  to  the  dignity  of  this  social 
phase  of  the  choir's  work.  The  important  thing  in  these 
social  gatherings  is  that  those  who  attend  shall  enjoy 
themselves,  and  go  home  more  thoroughly  interested  and 
attached  to  the  choir.  The  details  must  be  left  to  grow 
out  of  the  local  situation.  In  some  places,  a  more  or  less 
ambitious  musical  program  will  be  desirable.  In  others, 
a  little  forethought  for  general  plays  and  games  that  will 
amuse  will  be  wiser.  Anything  innocent  and  worthy 
that  will  interest  and  entertain  will  be  in  place. 

But  these  social  gatherings  need  not  be  confined  to  the 
home  of  the  pastor  or  of  the  leader.  It  will  add  much  to 
the  general  good  and  pleasure  if  other  members  of  the 
choir  open  the  doors  of  their  homes.  Indeed,  if  some 
other  member  of  the  congregation  outside  of  the  choir 
should  have  this  hospitable  impulse  and  give  the  choir  a 
pleasant  evening,  the  social  effect  will  be  even  more  in- 


292  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

spiring,  as  it  will  be  an  expression  of  appreciation  of  the 
choir's  work  by  the  church.  A  little  quiet  diplomacy,  by 
indirect  suggestion  at  second  or  even  third  hand,  will  easily 
secure  these  outside  opportunities. 

In  addition  to  these,  there  may  be  excursions  by  the 
choir  as  a  whole  to  neighbouring  towns  or  cities  to  attend 
some  important  musical  performance,  picnics  in  the  sum- 
mer-time, sleighing  parties  and  hay  wagon  rides  in  the 
winter,  and  other  like  informal  festivities. 

This  development  of  general  kindliness  and  of  the  sense 
of  personal  relation  and  responsibility  bears  directly  upon 
the  work  of  the  choir.  It  will  actually  sing  better  for  it. 
There  will  be  a  unity  of  feeling,  an  enthusiasm,  a  single- 
ness of  purpose,  that  a  less  genial  choir  cannot  hope  to 
achieve.  The  influence  will  also  be  felt  by  the  congrega- 
tion, who  will  be  more  responsive  to  the  songs  of  praise 
and  devotion  rendered  by  the  choir,  and  this  social  unity 
will  enable  the  choir  to  realize  the  consummate  flower  of 
beauty  and  impressiveness  which  it  would  otherwise 
miss. 

Even  the  most  unmusical  pastor  can  be  a  very  tower 
of  strength  on  the  social  side  of  the  choir  life.  His  oc- 
casional visits  to  the  rehearsals  may  be  productive  of 
great  good  in  this  difficult  phase  of  the  choir's  activities. 
He  can  suppress  unfortunate  remarks  made  by  indiscreet 
or  ill-natured  singers.  He  can  carry  kindly  expressions 
from  one  to  the  other.  He  can  suggest  and  plan  little 
merry  occasions  that  will  sweeten  the  social  atmosphere. 
By  a  little  finesse  he  can  secure  social  recognition  for  the 
choir  as  a  whole  outside  of  its  ranks.  In  a  thousand  little 
ways,  he  can  help  to  fill  the  life  of  the  choir  with  kindli- 
ness and  good-will. 


IX 

THE  SELECTION  OF  THE  MUSIC 

ONE  of  the  most  important  phases  of  choir  work 
is  the  selection  of  the  music  to  be  rendered, 
and  I  will  be  pardoned  if  I  refer  to  it  again  at 
greater  length.  No  other  of  the  choir  leader's  many 
responsibilities  is  quite  so  far-reaching  in  its  influence 
as  this.  On  it  depends  the  spirit  with  which  the  choir 
takes  up  its  work  in  the  rehearsal,  and  the  measure  not 
only  of  the  artistic,  but,  what  is  more  important,  of  the 
spiritual  success  that  is  to  be  achieved.  It  should  be 
taken  up  with  great  seriousness  and  extreme  care. 

Before  reaching  a  final  conclusion  the  capability  of 
each  composition  should  be  thoroughly  understood,  and 
all  the  conditions  to  be  met  carefully  considered.  To 
look  over  twenty-five  pieces  of  music  in  as  many  minutes, 
and  to  select  what  is  to  be  sung  for  weeks  to  come,  is  a 
wasteful  economy  of  time.  Account  of  too  many  things 
is  to  be  taken  to  dispatch  the  selection  in  such  haste.  It 
may  be  well  to  call  in  the  organist  and  to  spend  a  whole 
evening  playing  and  talking  over  the  samples  that  have 
been  secured.  The  pastor's  plans  for  the  coming  weeks 
should  be  learned  and  studied.  A  selection  of  new  music 
varied  in  style  and  subject  should  be  kept  in  reserve  for 
possible  emergencies.  In  this  way  there  is  no  danger  of 
any  serious  blunder  being  made  in  the  selection. 

In  choosing  the  music  it  is  important  that  the  capacity 

293 


294  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

of  the  choir  be  carefully  considered.  A  quartet,  no  mat- 
ter how  cultivated,  has  no  business  to  undertake  a  defi- 
nitely chorus  anthem.  This  mistake  has  been  made  in 
my  hearing  by  several  of  the  finest  quartets  in  New  York 
City,  and  the  result  in  each  case  was  pitifully  inadequate, 
emphasized  as  it  was  by  the  registration  of  the  organist, 
which  entirely  suited  the  music,  but  drowned  out  the 
poor  soloists  who  were  trying  to  play  the  role  of  a  full 
chorus. 

Of  course,  the  contrary  mistake  can  also  be  made,  for 
many  a  beautiful  quartet  requiring  delicacy  of  interpre- 
tation in  the  individual  voices  would  be  ruined  by  the 
heavy  treatment  of  a  chorus  choir. 

If  a  number  has  one  or  more  solos,  the  point  is  to  be 
raised  whether  the  voices  adapted  to  them  are  to  be  found 
in  the  choir. 

A  choir  may  have  some  excellent  readers  and  singers, 
but  the  body  of  them  may  be  very  slow  to  take  up  any- 
thing elaborate  or  difficult.  Here  the  general  average 
must  rule.  It  is  poor  policy  to  select  music  that  the 
choir  cannot  render  well  with  a  moderate  amount  of 
study,  no  matter  how  classical  it  may  be,  and  how  much 
it  would  raise  the  reputation  of  the  leader  and  choir  for 
singing  high  grade  music.  An  easy  anthem  by  Ashford, 
Schnecker,  or  Geibel,  sung  with  the  consciousness  of  full 
mastery,  is  worth  for  devotional  purposes  a  dozen  full 
anthems  by  Smart  or  Gounod  wretchedly  bungled  and 
butchered.  Of  course,  it  is  well  now  and  then,  on  special 
occasions,  to  brace  up  the  choir  with  something  more 
ambitious,  and  to  take  the  time  to  conquer  it  completely. 

The  capacity  of  the  congregation  to  understand  music 
is  another  important  consideration.  To  sing  an  anthem 
by  Danks   to  a  highly  cultivated  audience,  accustomed 


THE  SELECTION  OF  THE  MUSIC  295 

to  hear  the  most  artistic  music  in  the  world  in  the  con- 
cert room,  would  be  as  foolish  as  to  render  a  Bach  Passion 
cantata  to  a  rural  congregation  of  few  musical  privileges. 
Meat  for  the  mature  and  strong,  and  milk  for  the  babes, 
is  the  general  rule  that  is  as  sensible  in  church  music  as 
it  is  in  graded  readers  for  the  public  schools.  In  a  paper 
read  before  a  church  congress,  Mr.  Barnby  maintained 
11  that  the  music  of  every  church  must  be  such  as  the 
congregation  can  appreciate — that  in  fact  the  musical 
ability  of  the  church  must  be  the  standard  of  selection." 

It  is  not  merely  a  question  of  grade  of  difficulty,  but 
one  of  the  modes  of  thought  due  to  different  education. 
A  thoroughly  popular  American  congregation  will  enjoy 
emphatic  rhythms  that  would  actually  be  offensive  to  an- 
other congregation  of  perhaps  the  same  grade  of  general 
intelligence,  made  up  largely  of  German  or  English  immi- 
grants accustomed  to  a  more  sedate  and  conventional 
style  of  church  music.  The  type  of  piety  has  also  much 
to  do  with  it :  a  stirring,  aggressive,  emotional  Methodist 
congregation  demands  an  entirely  different  style  from  its 
neighbouring  equally  pious  but  more  staid  and  decorous 
Lutheran  church. 

The  temporary  moods  of  the  congregation  should  also 
be  studied  and  an  effort  made  to  give  them  appropriate 
expression  or  needed  treatment.  In  times  of  prosperity 
the  anthems  should  breathe  a  spirit  of  thanksgiving  and 
praise ;  when  an  unusual  spiritual  interest  pervades  the 
people,  care  should  be  taken  to  have  texts  making  much 
of  Jesus  Christ  and  the  soul's  relations  with  Him ;  if  a 
missionary  enthusiasm  is  moving  the  leaders  of  the  church, 
anthems  sympathizing  with  this  aggressive  attitude  should 
be  selected ;  should  there  be  an  unusual  amount  of  afflic- 
tion and  sorrow  in  the  congregation,  something  express- 


296  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

ive  of  the  human  need  of  divine  help,  or  some  of  the 
comforting  promises  that  console  and  cheer,  will  be  appre- 
ciated. The  sympathetic  pastor  will  be  glad  to  suggest 
what  the  people  most  need.  Great  account  must  be 
made  of  this  individuality  of  need  in  the  congregation  to 
be  served,  else  the  music  may  become  an  actual  hindrance. 

It  must  always  be  remembered  that  in  the  singing  of 
its  set  music  the  choir  is  the  representative  of  the  church. 
As  such  representative,  or,  I  may  say,  mouthpiece,  of  the 
assembled  people,  it  ought  to  express  what  the  congre- 
gation desires  to  have  expressed,  or  the  representative 
character  is  lost.  The  impulse,  that  leads  the  musical 
authorities  to  cultivate  a  class  of  music  above  the  sym- 
pathy and  comprehension  of  the  congregation  as  a  whole, 
is  born  of  the  same  motive  that  led  to  the  performance 
of  the  church  service  in  Latin  and  is  equally  wide  of  the 
purpose. 

Then  the  choir  leader  must  take  into  consideration  the 
style  of  work  and  the  plans  of  the  pastor  of  the  church, 
whether  the  church  year  is  carefully  observed  or  not. 
Mr.  Monk  used  to  choose  his  music  with  a  single  eye  to 
the  season  of  the  year  and  the  character  of  the  service. 
"  We  never  sing  an  anthem  because  we  like  it,  or  because 
it  is  asked  for."  If  the  pastor  is  aggressively  evangel- 
istic, seeking  to  increase  his  congregation  by  attracting 
unchurched  people,  and  winning  them  to  a  religious  life, 
the  music  must  keep  step  with  the  general  movement  of 
the  church  life,  and  a  more  emotional  and  rhythmical 
style  of  music  must  then  prevail.  If  special  services  are 
in  view,  evangelistic  anthems,  Gospel  songs  and  men's 
quartets  will  be  sought.  On  the  other  hand,  the  pastor 
who  emphasizes  the  divine  injunction,  "  Feed  My  sheep," 
and  looks  after  those  already  in  the  church  and  its  fam- 


THE  SELECTION  OF  THE  MUSIC  297 

ilies,  will  prefer  a  quieter,  more  contemplative  line  of 
anthems. 

Then  the  detailed  plans  of  the  pastor  can  often  be 
greatly  aided  by  a  judicious  selection  of  music.  The 
choir  leader  should  keep  in  constant  touch  and  commu- 
nication with  him  in  order  to  secure  the  mutually  helpful 
advantages  of  close  cooperation.  If  the  music  fits  the 
sermon  and  the  service  as  the  glove  does  the  lady's  hand, 
the  choir  leader  will  get  the  credit  and  win  the  greater 
influence.  If  the  music  is  in  crass  discord  with  the  rest 
of  the  service,  intelligent  listeners  will  criticise  the  leader, 
not  the  pastor,  although  both  are  at  fault.  Close  co- 
operation will  be  found  to  add  very  greatly  to  the  value 
of  the  services,  and  nowhere  will  it  find  a  more  influential 
expression  than  in  the  choice  of  the  music. 

Let  me  again  emphasize  in  this  connection  that  in  the 
choice  of  anthems  there  should  be  no  narrowness  of 
standard  and  no  egotistical  emphasis  of  personal  likes 
and  dislikes.  Dr.  Stainer,  who  certainly  ought  to  be  an 
authority,  in  an  address  before  a  church  congress,  in 
1874,  gave  a  warning  that  may  well  be  heeded  now. 
"  Take  care  not  to  think  yourselves  born  champions  of  a 
special  style,  .  .  .  giving  no  preference  to  new  as 
against  old,  or  old  as  against  new.  Remember  the  Cath- 
olicity of  art,  and  draw  freely  from  all  wells  .  .  . 
ready  to  accept  or  reject  solely  on  the  ground  of  merit." 

There  are  certain  recurring  seasonable  needs  in  every 
church  and  they  ought  to  be  provided  for  long  in  ad- 
vance. To  wait  with  the  selection  of  Christmas  music 
until  the  second  week  in  December,  is  criminal  negligence 
in  any  case,  but  particularly  so  where  the  mails  are  the 
one  means  of  securing  samples  and  chosen  music.  The 
letter  is  sure  to  be  misaddressed  or  missent  by  the  postal 


298  PHACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

clerks,  or  the  orders  written  in  nervous  haste  are  inevi- 
tably misleading  or  vague,  if  not  wholly  wrong,  or  in  the 
rush  of  trade  a  clerk  pigeonholes  the  order,  or  makes  a 
mistake  in  the  order,  or  writes  a  wrong  address,  and  all 
is  confusion  and  vexation,  for  which  the  leader  usually 
blames  everybody  but  the  guilty  one — himself.  Samples 
should  be  ordered  in  good  time,  a  selection  made,  and 
the  final  order  promptly  given,  and  then  there  will  be 
plenty  of  time  to  rehearse  properly.  Where  the  church 
year  is  strictly  observed,  the  selection  of  music  is  some- 
what simplified,  but  even  in  this  case  foresight  and  prompt- 
ness will  prove  all-important. 


X 

THE  FINANCES  OF  THE  CHOIR 

THE  financial  side  of  the  choir  presents  great 
difficulties  and  a  wise  pastor  will  win  the  good- 
will of  the  choir  by  giving  personal  attention 
to  its  needs.  Of  course,  the  expenses  of  the  ideal  choir 
are  provided  for  in  the  regular  church  budget,  and  its 
bills  paid  by  the  church  treasury. 

If  all  the  choirs  were  really  ideal,  our  discussion  of 
choir  finances  would  be  very  short,  but,  "  the  more's  the 
pity,"  the  choirs  whose  finances  are  ideally  provided  are 
yet  an  extremely  small  proportion  of  the  whole  number. 
My  suggestions  on  the  financial  line  must  be  practical 
rather  than  ideal,  and  plans  must  be  proposed  that  make 
a  virtue  of  necessity. 

Let  us  consider  for  one  moment  the  necessary  ex- 
penses :  The  music  that  is  used  from  Sabbath  to  Sab- 
bath must  be  paid  for,  of  course.  In  the  course  of  the 
year  it  amounts  to  quite  a  sum,  especially  if  the  choir 
prefers  separate  numbers,  or  octavos,  and  if  it  is  too 
ambitious  to  sing  anthems  once  rendered  over  and  over 
again.  Of  course,  choir  journals  cut  down  this  expense 
very  considerably  without  lowering  the  standard  of  ef- 
fectiveness and  beauty  in  the  slightest  degree,  but  still 
that  item  of  expense  is  quite  important.  In  addition 
there  is  occasional  sheet  music  for  solo  numbers  and 
special  occasions,  and,  if  the  choir  carries  a  banner  for 

299 


300  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

industry  and  aggressiveness,  the  semi-annual  cantata, 
which  also  represents  considerable  expense. 

The  choir  leader  and  organist  must  give  so  much  at- 
tention and  time  to  the  work,  that  they  ought  by  all  means 
to  be  remunerated  for  their  services.  Too  much  depends 
upon  their  expertness,  and  upon  the  financial  condition  of 
the  individual  congregation,  that  I  should  suggest  a  price; 
but  whatever  the  amount,  it  should  be  something.  In 
England  the  rule  seems  to  be  ten  per  cent,  of  the  minis- 
ter's salary,  which  is  certainly  not  excessive. 

The  congregation  values  at  nothing  what  it  gets  for 
nothing.  The  moment  the  people  pay  for  the  music  they 
enjoy  in  their  church,  that  moment  they  take  more  inter- 
est in  it  and  become  more  responsive  to  its  influence. 
The  leader  and  organist  will  feel  a  deeper  sense  of  re- 
sponsibility, and  do  more  efficient  work,  if  a  stated  sum  is 
allowed  them.  Their  position  means  more  to  them  and 
to  the  choir,  their  dignity  and  influence  are  increased, 
and  the  result  is  beneficent  out  of  all  proportion  to  the 
amount  paid. 

When  these  persons  do  not  need  the  money  they  so 
fully  earn,  and  prefer  to  make  an  offering  of  their  talents, 
it  would  still  be  better  to  allow  them  a  salary,  and  then 
let  them  decide  to  what  purpose  it  is  to  be  applied  and 
cover  it  back  again  into  the  church  treasury.  That  would 
put  a  tangible  valuation  upon  their  services  that  would 
awaken  a  larger  appreciation  than  they  now  receive. 

That  a  large  chorus  of  amateur  singers  should  be  paid, 
is  practicable  only  in  a  few  churches.  A  volunteer  choir 
of  average  singers  out  of  the  congregation,  who  have  the 
benefit  of  efficient  direction,  are  receiving  as  well  as  con- 
ferring a  benefit,  and  I  do  not  believe  they  can  claim  any 
remuneration.     Where  a  church  is  wealthy  it  may  be 


THE  FINANCES  OF  THE  CHOIE  301 

expedient  to  allow  a  small  fee  to  promote  punctuality  at 
rehearsals  and  church  services.  If  trained  singers  are 
sought — those  who  have  spent  much  time  and  money 
upon  their  musical  education — in  all  equity  they  should 
be  paid  something  in  proportion  to  their  true  value. 

But  whatever  the  sum  total  of  expenses,  they  must  be 
met.  When  the  church  does  its  duty,  this  responsibility 
does  not  rest  upon  the  choir ;  but  when  the  church  is  poor 
or  indifferent,  the  choir  must  meet  its  own  bills.  In  such 
a  case  the  outlay  is  usually  confined  to  music  and  the  oc- 
casional rental  of  extra  instruments,  and  the  sum  is  not 
large.  The  methods  of  raising  the  needed  money  are  as 
varied  as  the  circumstances  of  the  choir.  Some  assess  a 
small  fee  upon  each  member  of  the  choir.  This  is  not 
fair  to  the  singers,  who  already  contribute  time  and  effort. 

The  more  equitable  way  is  to  appoint  a  finance  com- 
mittee, who  shall  make  a  canvass  of  the  members  of  the 
congregation  who  are,  or  ought  to  be,  interested  in  the 
music,  or  shall  arrange  for  a  collection  for  the  work  of  the 
choir  on  some  appointed  day. 

When  for  any  reason  this  is  not  practicable,  an  annual 
entertainment  may  prove  feasible,  combining,  as  it  does, 
a  pleasant  variation  from  the  regular  work,  a  charming 
social  occasion  inspiring  the  whole  congregation  with 
new  interest,  with  the  financial  results  sought  for.  This 
may  be  a  regular  secular  concert,  with  plenty  of  choral 
work  and  needed  solo  variety ;  or  a  cantata,  either  serious 
or  humorous,  an  old  folks  program  or  a  miscellaneous 
program,  which  shall  include  representatives  of  all  classes 
of  the  church,  may  be  provided.  An  oyster  supper  or  a 
lawn  fete  with  ices  and  cake  may  appeal  to  a  less  intel- 
lectual congregation.  But  whatever  the  plan,  it  must 
never  be  forgotten  that  the  choir  is  a  department  of  the 


302  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

church.  While  a  certain  grade  of  humour  will  be  entirely 
permissible,  anything  that  is  coarse  and  rude  is  entirely 
out  of  place. 

However  the  money  may  be  secured,  it  will  be  well  to 
have  a  treasurer  who  shall  take  charge  of  it  and  make  re- 
ports from  time  to  time  as  to  the  condition  of  the 
treasury.  He  ought  to  be  an  aggressive,  long-headed  in- 
dividual, who  will  provide  the  money  for  coming  expenses 
as  they  arise,  and  be  beholden  to  no  one,  not  tasking  the  pa- 
tience of  some  generous  member  of  the  choir  who  advances 
the  money,  or  of  the  music  publisher,  who  has  printer's 
bills  to  meet  andjs  in  trouble  because  his  customers  are 
not  prompt  in  paying  their  bills.  The  really  competent 
pastor,  the  general  executive  head  of  the  congregation, 
will  not  consider  the  financial  problems  of  the  choir  be- 
neath his  notice.  He  will  see  that  his  people  are  en- 
lightened as  to  their  financial  duties  to  the  church  choir, 
and  will  not  permit  the  whole  burden  to  fall  upon  a  few 
persons,  the  sweetness  of  whose  approving  conscience  is 
embittered  by  a  sense  of  being  imposed  upon. 


XI 

THE  WORK  OF  THE  CHOIR 

LET  us  hurriedly  review  just  what  help  the  minister 
can  secure  from  the  choir.  Of  course,  every- 
where the  choir  is  used  in  the  leading  of  the 
hymns.  But  there  is  so  little  emphasis  placed  upon  this, 
that  the  choir  often  does  it  rather  as  a  part  of  the  con- 
gregation than  as  recognizing  its  leadership.  There  is 
little  practice  of  the  tunes,  little  study  of  the  hymns  in 
order  to  get  the  best  effects  from  them,  little  sense  of  re- 
sponsibility in  general  for  the  success  of  the  congrega- 
tional singing. 

In  many  places  the  very  opposite  result  follows.  The 
choir,  having  such  a  sense  of  responsibility  for  the  hymns, 
introduces  new  tunes  that  the  congregation  cannot  sing 
and  gradually  eliminates  the  congregation  altogether, 
making  what  ought  to  be  the  congregational  hymn 
merely  another  form  of  choir  music.  This  usually  goes 
back  to  the  leader  of  the  choir  who  is  so  absorbed  in  his 
own  work,  and  in  the  musical  aspects  of  it,  that  he  has  no 
concern  in  or  sense  of  responsibility  for  the  congrega- 
tional singing.  The  limitations  of  the  congregational 
song  fret  him  and  he  is  unwilling  to  adjust  himself  to  its 
needs.  He  thinks  the  choir  can  sing  the  hymn  so  much 
better,  that  he  either  deliberately  or  semi-consciously 
crowds  out  the  congregation  in  order  to  get  the  musical 
effects  that  are  so  dear  to  his  heart.     Here  is  where  the 

3°3 


304  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

minister's  authority  ought  to  be  clearly  defined  and 
bravely  exercised. 

A  well  disciplined  choir — I  now  refer  to  its  obedience 
to  the  minister — will  be  extremely  effective  in  varying  the 
singing  of  the  hymns,  as  I  have  already  indicated  else- 
where. In  many  a  hymn  there  occurs  a  stanza  of  tender- 
ness, or  other  delicate  feeling,  or  one  so  varied  in  its 
emotional  content,  that  the  congregation  can  hardly  hope 
to  give  it  proper  expression.  Here  the  choir  can  come 
in  with  particular  appropriateness  and  effectiveness.  The 
congregation  will  take  up  the  other  stanzas  with  all  the 
more  intensity,  after  having  listened  to  the  thoroughly 
genuine  and  impressive  rendering  by  the  choir.  The  solo 
singers  in  the  choir  can  also  be  used  with  good  effect  in 
single  stanzas  of  a  hymn.  Where  songs  are  responsive 
in  character,  the  choir  and  the  congregation  may  sing 
antiphonally. 

Then  there  will  be  frequent  occasions  when  a  little 
extra  music  will  be  helpful ;  the  thought  of  the  sermon 
may  be  impressed  more  deeply  by  an  appropriate  solo  or 
other  music,  known  to  the  minister  or  suggested  by  the 
wide-awake  and  resourceful  choir  leader.  By  such 
mutual  helpfulness  and  suggestiveness  the  congregation 
will  enjoy  many  impressive  and  delightful  surprises. 

Especially  during  Gospel  meetings  can  the  choir  be 
used  to  splendid  purpose.  Their  hearty  cooperation  will 
largely  solve  the  problem  of  securing  the  attendance  of 
the  general  public  whom  it  is  desired  to  reach.  Of 
course,  they  must  be  willing  to  sing  Gospel  songs  instead 
of  artistic  music,  if  the  results  in  this  line  are  to  be  at- 
tained. These  few  suggestions  show  how  valuable  a 
feature  a  well  utilized  choir  can  be  in  the  congregational 
singing. 


THE  WOEK  OF  THE  CHOIE  305 

Of  course,  the  singing  of  anthems  and  other  set  music 
is  the  particular  work  of  the  choir.  Such  music  adds 
dignity,  impressiveness,  and  attractiveness  to  the  public 
service.  Particularly  in  the  worshipful  element  of  the 
service  can  the  choir  be  made  useful,  producing  the 
atmosphere  of  devotion  so  often  lacking. 

But  the  choir  is  not  only  the  representative  of  the 
congregation  in  worship  and  praise,  as  is  the  minister  in 
prayer,  but  also  an  assistant  to  the  preacher.  There  are 
many  truths  that  can  better  be  impressed  by  means  of  a 
song  than  by  preaching.  The  wise  anthem  writer 
studies  his  texts  with  extreme  care  and  often  makes  a 
little  sermon  of  his  anthem.  A  fine  setting  and  singing 
of  "  God  so  loved  the  world,"  John  3:16,  will  sometimes 
be  better  than  a  formal  sermon  on  that  text.  More 
effective  than  an  exhortation  from  the  minister  will  often 
be  an  anthem  setting  of  "  Stand  up  for  Jesus,"  or 
"  Onward,  Christian  Soldiers."  The  consummate  touch 
of  urgency  may  be  given  to  a  sermon  of  invitation  by 
the  choir's  singing  of  "  The  Spirit  and  the  Bride  Say 
Come."  This  hortatory,  didactic  element  in  the  work  of 
the  choir  should  not  be  overlooked. 

But  if  the  minister  wishes  to  bring  out  the  full 
effectiveness  of  this  form  of  the  choir's  help,  he  must 
preface  it  with  a  few  striking  words  making  the  purpose 
of  the  music  plain.  He  may  simply  read  the  text  of  the 
anthem,  solo,  or  concerted  number  to  be  sung,  in  an 
earnest,  effective  way.  He  may  awaken  interest  and 
feeling  by  a  historical  or  anecdotal  illustration.  The  im- 
portant thing  is  to  switch  the  minds  of  the  congregation 
off  of  the  old  track  of  mere  musical  enjoyment  to  one  of 
spiritual  responsiveness  and  apprehension. 

But  whether   devotional,    didactic,  or   hortatory,  the 


306  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

choice  of  the  opening  anthem  should  be  at  least  in- 
directly controlled  by  the  pastor,  and  made  to  contribute 
to  the  definite  purpose  of  the  service.  I  do  not  mean 
that  the  words  of  the  anthem,  any  more  than  the  open- 
ing hymns,  should  bear  directly  on  the  theme  of  the 
sermon.  That  were  shallow  logic.  The  opening 
anthem  should  rather  strike  the  emotional  key  of  the 
service  and  so  prepare  the  hearts  of  the  worshippers  for 
what  is  to  follow.  If  he  will  suggest  his  theme  and  the 
nature  of  the  desired  sentiment  to  the  choir,  it  will 
usually  be  sufficient. 

There  is  other  special  music  besides  anthems  that  the 
choir  can  render  in  the  development  of  the  pastor's 
plans.  Once  in  a  while  it  will  be  effective  to  sing  some 
Gospel  song,  giving  it  a  little  more  emotional  expression 
than  is  possible  with  the  general  congregation.  Such 
pieces  as  "  I  Need  Thee  Every  Hour,"  "  Safe  in  the 
Arms  of  Jesus,"  "  It  is  Well  with  My  Soul,"  "  Almost 
Persuaded,"  will  be  revitalized  and  made  more  freshly 
effective  by  such  a  method.  Then  there  are  responses 
either  before  or  after  prayer,  which,  if  properly  managed 
and  not  used  too  continuously  and  mechanically,  will  be 
very  impressive  and  helpful. 

A  good  choir,  in  sympathy  with  the  church  and  its 
varied  work,  can  be  exceedingly  useful  outside  of  the 
regular  church  service.  It  can  be  of  inestimable  value  in 
special  services,  both  by  making  them  attractive  to  out- 
siders and  by  deepening  the  emotional  impression  upon 
the  people.  They  can  be  used  occasionally  in  the 
special  Sunday-school  services  and  meetings  with  admi- 
rable results.  For  social  gatherings  of  the  church  they 
can  provide  secular  numbers  that  will  add  brightness  and 
cheer.     They  can  provide  concerts  for  special  objects,  not 


THE  WOEK  OF  THE  CHOIR  307 

only  to  raise  money  for  them,  but  to  create  general 
interest  in  them.  The  strategic  value  of  the  choir  will 
be  immense,  if  properly  managed  by  a  pastor  who  is  a 
wise  general. 


XII 
THE  CHOIR  IN  THE  CHURCH  SERVICE 

A  WORD  or  two  regarding  the  actual  work  of 
the  choir  in  the  church  service  may  not  be 
amiss. 
Wherever  it  is  possible,  the  choir  should  gather  in  a 
separate  room  and  take  their  places  in  the  choir  loft  as  a 
body,  marching  in  regular  order.  Personally  I  find  it 
very  offensive  and  distracting  to  see  the  choir  straggling 
in  one  by  one,  taking  off  their  wraps,  fussing  with  their 
hats  and  ribbons,  chatting,  laughing,  giggling.  It  is  an 
unseemly  introduction  to  the  solemn  work  that  is  to  be 
done,  and  the  unseemly  conduct  easily  carries  over  into 
the  service  itself.  Where  there  is  no  separate  room 
available,  the  best  must  be  made  of  the  situation.  The 
director  ought  to  have  a  frank  discussion  of  the  matter 
with  the  choir  and  secure  a  general  agreement  to  secure 
the  utmost  possible  decorum  while  the  choir  is  gather- 
ing. 

Where  the  room  for  gathering  is  available  and  the 
choir  can  enter  in  a  body,  the  question  of  a  processional 
will  naturally  come  up.  It  is  a  very  impressive  and 
effective  exercise  that  will  be  advisable  at  least  semi-oc- 
casionally.  However,  much  will  depend  on  its  effect  on 
the  congregation.  If  there  is  a  respectable  minority 
that  objects  to  it,  as  an  aping  after  the  practices  of 
liturgic  churches,  it  should  not  be  done.  Then  there  are 
persons  of  severe  taste  to  whom  the  performance  will 
appear  theatrical  and  spectacular,  and  their  sense  of  fit- 

308 


THE  CHOIR  IN  THE  CHURCH  SERVICE     309 

ness  must  be  respected  as  well  as  the  conscientious 
scruples  of  the  others.  In  such  cases  the  processional 
will  do  the  minority  more  harm  than  it  will  do  the  others 
good. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  all  musical  people  do  not  have 
good  taste  in  millinery  and  dress.  The  artistic  tempera- 
ment of  some  singers  seems  in  many  cases  to  so  overflow 
on  the  person,  in  a  very  inundation  of  spectacular  head- 
gear and  gorgeous  raiment,  as  to  offend  the  taste  and 
distract  the  devotions  of  persons  in  the  congregation 
who  have  severer  ideals.  The  dissonance  between  the 
vanity  that  prompts  such  excessive  if  not  vulgar  dress- 
iness and  the  purposes  of  the  assembly  is  so  harsh, 
that  it  is  not  strange  that  there  is  frequent  complaint. 
Even  where  there  is  no  individual  excess,  there  may  be 
such  lack  of  harmony  between  the  colours  worn  by  the 
different  ladies  that  again  there  will  be  good  cause  for 
complaint  on  the  part  of  persons  of  fastidious  taste.  I 
well  remember  how  a  choir  looked  one  Sunday  morning 
during  a  season  when  red  was  the  fashionable  colour. 
The  shirt-waists  of  the  ladies  flamed  in  pink,  in  scarlet,  in 
crimson,  in  cherry  red,  in  purple  red,  in  magenta,  in 
carmine,  in  cardinal,  in  cerise.  If  some  one  had  placed 
an  arm  across  the  keyboard  of  the  full  organ,  the  clash 
and  clamour  and  discord  could  not  have  been  worse. 

There  are  two  ways  of  preventing  these  unseemly  dis- 
plays of  finery  in  the  choir  loft.  One  is  for  the  director 
to  talk  the  matter  over  with  his  more  influential  ladies 
and  create  a  sentiment  in  favour  of  modest,  inconspicuous 
clothes  that  will  not  only  create  but  enforce  an  unwritten 
law  that  gay  clothing  shall  not  be  worn  in  the  choir,  the 
offending  culprit  to  be  punished  with  merciless  banter, 
persiflage  and  ridicule. 


310  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

The  other  way  is  to  introduce  a  regular  uniform,  either 
the  traditional  one  of  cassock  and  cotta  with  a  "  mortar 
board  "  for  the  ladies,  or  some  less  formal  dress  agreed 
upon  by  them.  A  surpliced  choir  is  apt  to  rouse  tradi- 
tional prejudices  as  savouring  of  "  popery  "  in  many  con- 
gregations. The  gain  is  too  small  to  warrant  running  the 
risk  of  harming  "  weak  brethren,"  or  of  dividing  the 
church  by  insisting  on  the  regular  vestments.  In  nine 
cases  out  of  ten  the  best  solution  is  for  the  men  to  wear 
their  regular  costumes  and  the  women  to  wear  plain 
black  or  shades  of  gray. 

Many  choirs  make  a  very  bad  impression  by  the  awk- 
ward, straggling  way  in  which  they  rise.  There  should 
be  special  practice  in  rising  promptly  and  uniformly  in 
the  rehearsal,  so  that  this  fault  may  be  avoided.  The 
director's  signal  should  be  so  clear  as  not  to  fail  to  be 
understood  by  the  choir  and  yet  so  inconspicuous  that 
the  congregation  will  not  notice  it.  Not  until  the  choir 
is  standing  should  the  organist  begin  the  prelude  of  the 
anthem.  In  case  the  anthem  has  no  formal  prelude,  the 
opening  two  or  four  measures  may  be  played  as  such. 
The  important  point  is  that  the  choir  shall  get  not  only 
the  pitch  but  the  tonality  of  the  music  about  to  be  sung. 

Whether  the  director  shall  stand  before  the  choir  to 
beat  time  and  direct  the  music,  must  depend  chiefly  on 
the  size  of  the  choir,  although  even  a  well-trained  large 
choir  may  dispense  with  this  aid.  The  amount  of  dem- 
onstration natural  to  the  director  must  also  be  considered. 
If  he  is  extremely  nervous  and  active,  given  to  varied 
and  striking  gesticulation,  the  help  he  affords  the  choir 
will  be  more  than  neutralized  by  the  distraction  he  forces 
upon  the  congregation.  On  the  other  hand,  if  he  is  dig- 
nified and  quietly  expressive  of  the  feelings  to  be  given 


THE  CHOIR  IN  THE  CHURCH  SERVICE     311 

voice  by  the  music,  he  may  even  add  to  the  value  of  the 
work  of  the  choir.  With  the  average  director,  however, 
it  is  an  open  question  whether  he  does  not  do  more  harm 
than  good. 

The  fact  is,  that  if  the  work  in  the  rehearsal  has  been 
well  done,  if  the  choir  has  learned  the  music  thoroughly 
and  has  fully  comprehended  its  spirit,  the  average  choir 
could  well  dispense  with  the  public  direction.  But  the 
question  is  to  be. settled  by  each  choir  for  itself.  There 
is  here  no  mechanical  rule  that  can  be  applied  promis- 
cuously. Too  much  depends  on  the  choir,  on  the  di- 
rector, and  on  the  fastidiousness  of  the  congregation. 

If  the  director  does  lead  publicly  and  has  the  necessary 
public  address,  it  will  be  wise  as  a  rule  for  him  to  read 
the  text  of  the  anthem,  whether  Scripture  or  hymn,  be- 
fore the  choir  rises.  It  is  now  the  exceptional  thing,  it 
is  true,  but  the  greater  is  the  pity,  for  I  know  nothing 
that  will  add  more  of  effectiveness  to  the  work  of  the 
choir.  A  great  many  choirs  articulate  so  badly,  and  so 
many  hearers  are  so  slow  in  understanding  the  words, 
that  such  a  habit  would  make  the  purpose  and  spirit  of 
the  music  much  more  intelligible. 

That  a  choir  of  boys  should  get  restive  and  create 
more  or  less  disturbance  in  public  worship,  is  not  surpris- 
ing, but  that  there  should  be  trouble  of  a  like  character 
with  mature  persons  who  ought  to  understand  the  dignity 
of  their  position,  as  well  as  the  obligations  of  the  time 
and  place,  is  not  so  evident.  But  there  are  grown  up 
children  who  have  not  "  put  away  childish  things  "  and 
are  as  irresponsible  as  the  veriest  infant.  They  whisper, 
they  giggle,  they  nudge  their  neighbours,  they  play  prac- 
tical tricks, — but  why  should  I  catalogue  the  follies  of 
fools  ?      That    such    conduct   should   scandalize   devout 


312  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

people,  whose  worship  is  disturbed,  is  entirely  natural, 
and  their  complaints  are  entirely  justified. 

In  touching  incidentally  upon  this  point  in  an  article 
on  choir  work,  Dr.  D.  E.  Lorenz  puts  the  results  of  such 
conduct  on  the  part  of  choir  singers  very  strongly  :  "  So 
long  as  members  of  a  choir  make  attendance  at  public 
worship  a  matter  of  whim  or  of  convenience,  instead  of 
one  of  the  most  urgent  and  sacred  of  duties ;  so  long 
as  there  is  frivolous  and  irreverent  conduct  sometimes 
amounting  to  actual  disorder,  distracting  the  thoughts  of 
the  congregation  by  audible  whisperings  and  noisy  turn- 
ing of  leaves  in  the  music  folios ;  so  long  as  disagree- 
ments and  jealousies  between  individual  choir  members 
are  subjects  of  gossip  and  scandal  in  a  community,  it  is 
not  to  be  wondered  at  if  the  choir  is  not  given  a  con- 
spicuous place  of  honour.  Putting  on  graceful  and  im- 
pressive vestments  will  not  add  sanctity  to  public  worship, 
when  those  who  wear  them  seem  to  have  so  low  a  con- 
ception of  the  sanctity  of  their  office.  If  any  minister 
treated  his  position  with  the  indifference  and  levity,  too 
often  shown  by  singers  towards  their  work,  he  would 
soon  be  in  disfavour  in  the  eyes  of  the  congregation  and 
of  the  community." 

How  shall  such  conduct  be  stopped  ?  Certainly  not  by 
the  minister's  public  rebuke,  the  sting  of  which  is  sharp- 
ened by  his  evident  bad  temper.  The  minister  who  thus 
descends  to  the  level  of  the  mischief-makers  deserves  the 
trouble  he  creates  for  himself.  Nor  will  a  circular  letter 
to  the  members  of  the  choir  serve  the  purpose,  for  it 
involves  the  innocent  with  the  guilty.  To  arouse  the 
resentment  of  the  best  members  of  the  choir  in  a  per- 
fectly useless  way  certainly  is  not  wise.  Where  the  dis- 
turbing and  irreverent  actions  are  somewhat  general,  the 


THE  CHOIE  IN  THE  CHUECH  SERVICE     313 

choir  may  be  expostulated  with  in  the  succeeding  re- 
hearsal by  the  choir  director  in  a  tactful  way  "that  recog- 
nizes the  fact  that  all  the  members  are  not  involved. 
Where  the  trouble  is  confined  to  only  a  few,  these  should 
be  seen  personally  by  the  choir  director.  If  the  trouble 
is  repeated,  the  pastor  should  try  to  secure  a  promise  of 
reformation.  If  that  does  not  end  the  disturbance,  it  will 
probably  be  wise  to  ask  the  offending  singer  or  singers 
to  withdraw  from  the  choir.  In  any  and  every  case, 
never  write  a  letter  to  the  offending  persons  !  No  matter 
how  discreetly  the  communication  may  be  phrased,  there 
will  inevitably  be  expressions  that  the  recipients  will 
construe  offensively.  The  letter  will  be  like  the  firebrand 
of  Samson  tied  to  a  fox's  tail,  running  through  the  ripen- 
ing corn  of  the  members  of  the  congregation,  creating 
strife  and  misunderstanding  wherever  it  is  read. 

Perhaps  the  very  best  cure  for  a  flippant,  careless, 
noisy  choir  is  to  secure  a  genuine  revival  of  religion 
among  the  singers.  A  really  devout,  earnestly  religious 
singer  will  not  disturb  public  worship.  Flippancy,  shal- 
lowness, irreverence,  are  born  of  a  lack  of  spiritual 
comprehension. 


XIII 
THE  MINISTER  AND  THE  CHOIR 

THERE  are  few  pastors  who  secure  all  the  help 
their  choirs  are  really  able  to  afford  them. 
Some  are  timid  and  fear  to  ask  what  seem 
to  them  extra  favours  from  their  singers.  Others  are 
modest  and  their  musical  limitations  discourage  them. 
But  architects  need  not  be  good  stone-cutters,  nor  re- 
markable painters  of  magnificent  genius,  to  be  able  to 
use  these  accessories  to  admirable  purpose.  The  pastor 
need  not  be  an  accomplished  organist  or  singer.  With 
a  little  careful  thought  and  study  he  can  soon  acquire 
skill  in  managing  the  musical  part  of  his  service. 

A  great  many  choirs  do  not  achieve  the  highest  degree 
of  usefulness  of  which  they  are  capable,  because  they  do 
not  occupy  the  proper  relation  towards  the  pastor  of  the 
church  which  they  serve.  Some  of  them  have  a  sense 
of  independence  of  the  pastor  and  his  plans,  which  may 
satisfy  their  pride,  but  certainly  does  not  add  to  their 
influence  and  value.  As  well  might  the  artillery  declare 
itself  independent  of  the  general-in-chief  in  charge  of  a 
battle,  as  for  the  choir  to  ignore  the  pastor.  In  a  properly 
organized  church  every  department  of  its  work  ought  to 
feel  the  pastor's  influence  in  its  development  and  man- 
agement, not  only  indirectly  but  directly.  When  this 
condition  of  affairs  does  not  obtain,  there  certainly  can- 
not exist  a  high  degree  of  efficiency. 

Union  Chapel,  Islington,  London,  was  long  famous  for 
its  good  music.     Among  its  organists  were  such  musi- 

3H 


THE  MINISTEE  AND  THE  CHOIE  315 

cians  as  Dr.  Gauntlett  and  Ebenezer  Prout.  Yet,  Dr. 
Allon,  the  pastor,  says,  "  The  choirmaster  comes  to  me 
once  a  week  for  the  tunes,  and,  though  he  suggests,  and 
we  talk  over  what  is  to  be  sung,  yet  I  have  always  kept 
the  choice  in  my  own  hands." 

Rev.  D.  E.  Lorenz,  D.  D.,  of  New  York  City,  well  says 
in  a  recent  article,  "  The  pastor  who  has  not  had  a 
musical  training,  such  as  will  make  him  feel  confident 
of  his  musical  taste  and  judgment,  too  often  assumes  that 
he  must  leave  that  entire  department  of  worship  in  the 
hands  of  others.  It  is  a  great  mistake  for  the  pastor 
thus  to  abdicate  all  authority  and  oversight.  The  fact 
that  a  minister  does  not  play  a  musical  instrument,  and 
perhaps  has  an  indifferent  voice,  and  has  had  little  expe- 
rience in  choir  work,  does  not  imply  that  his  judgment 
and  cooperation  are  not  needed  in  directing  his  musical 
forces. 

u  Usually  the  organist  or  choir  leader  is  the  musical 
captain,  and  assumes  the  drill  and  direction  of  the  com- 
pany of  singers.  While  the  conscientious  and  compe- 
tent work  of  such  a  functionary  is  invaluable,  the  fact 
should  be  perfectly  patent  both  to  him  as  well  as  to  the 
choir  and  congregation,  that  the  pastor  is  the  general,  to 
whom  the  captain  and  his  company  are  directly  subject 
and  responsible. 

"  It  is  perfectly  absurd  that  it  should  be  assumed  either 
by  the  minister  or  by  his  people,  that  because  he  has  not 
a  technical  training  in  music,  he  is  absolved  from  all 
responsibility  in  so  important  a  part  of  the  church  service. 
It  is  a  very  easy  matter  to  assert  and  to  demand  that 
ministers  should  be  trained  for  musical  leadership  as 
thoroughly  and  effectively  as  for  sermonizing  and  pas- 
toral work.     Certainly  this  is  the  ideal,  and  it  is  a  pity 


316  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

that  so  small  a  proportion  in  the  ministry  are  prepared  to 
exercise  this  important  function  of  church  activity. 

"  But  it  may  be  questioned,  even  if  a  minister  is  com- 
petent to  train  a  choir,  whether  he  ought  to  assume  the 
office  of  choirmaster,  unless  perhaps  there  is  no  one  else 
in  the  congregation  able  to  do  justice  to  it.  It  is  not  the 
province  of  the  general  to  drill  the  soldiers,  and  it  is  a 
question  whether  he  would  not  detract  from  the  dignity 
and  authority  of  his  position  by  entering  into  the  minutiae 
of  instruction  and  correction.  But  it  is  his  duty  to  as- 
sume general  command  over  the  army  thus  trained  and 
disciplined,  and  he  would  cut  a  sorry  figure  if  in  the  open 
campaign  he  constantly  deferred  to  the  judgment  and 
decision  of  his  captain.  In  the  same  way,  outside  of  the 
technical  training  which  the  choirmaster  is  to  give,  the 
pastor  alone  should  be  the  judge  and  the  final  court  of 
appeal." 

While  the  pastor  may  know  nothing  of  music  in  its  de- 
tails, and  can  safely  leave  these  entirely  in  the  control  of 
the  music  committee,  the  choir  leader,  and  the  choir,  he 
ought  to  be  able  to  plan  for  its  general  work  in  such  a 
way  as  to  add  to  the  efficiency  of  the  whole  church  or- 
ganization ;  and  unless  the  choir  is  in  a  proper  state  of 
subordination  to  his  plans,  he  must  fail  in  fully  realizing 
his  idea.  It  is,  therefore,  the  duty  of  the  pastor  to  secure 
the  loyal  cooperation  of  his  choir,  and  no  less  the  duty 
of  the  choir  to  put  itself  into  such  a  relation  to  the  pastor 
that,  by  mutual  suggestion,  counsel,  and  definite  instruc- 
tion, its  work  shall  become  a  part  of  the  work  of  the 
church,  cooperating  with,  emphasizing,  and  enhancing 
the  other  forms  of  the  church's  activity. 

In  order  that  this  kindly  and  loyal  relation  shall  exist, 
it  will  be  necessary  that  the  choir  fully  accept  the  fact 


THE  MINISTER  AND  THE  CHOIR  317 

that  they  are  subordinate  in  their  work  to  the  will  and 
plans  of  the  pastor.  There  should  be  no  sting  or  vexa- 
tion in  such  a  relation,  but  rather  a  sense  of  greater  value 
and  responsibility,  of  greater  recognition  and  scope  of 
effort,  because  their  work  becomes  a  part  of  the  organic 
unity  of  the  church's  activities.  Should  the  pastor  be 
ignorant  of  the  value  of  music,  this  would  only  call  forth 
a  stronger  effort  to  impress  the  pastor  with  the  help  they 
are  able  to  give  him  and  to  suggest  plans  and  methods 
of  realizing  their  full  influence.  They  know  best  what 
range  of  selection  the  music  they  have  in  hand  affords, 
and  also  what  is  accessible  in  the  catalogues  of  publishers. 
The  variety  of  talent  and  power  in  the  choir  itself  is  an 
important  fact  to  be  considered,  as  many  a  choir  fails  to 
develop  its  latent  individual  capacities  and  so  deprives  the 
pastor  of  needed  help.  Understanding  the  general  pur- 
pose of  the  pastor,  they  can  draw  on  their  abundant  re- 
sources to  furnish  the  needed  help. 

Often  the  plans  of  the  pastor  may  be  thus  enlarged  and 
enriched  by  the  suggestions  of  a  devoted  and  loyal  choir, 
and  a  wise  and  judicious  man  will  accept  such  suggestions 
and  plans  with  a  hearty  welcome  and  a  grateful  word  of 
acknowledgment  that  will  add  much  to  the  kindly  spirit 
existing  between  them.  Dr.  J.  S.  Curwen  gives  excellent 
advice  to  ministers  :  "  Treat  them  as  the  colleagues  and 
assistants  of  the  minister,  let  prayer  be  offered  for  them 
from  time  to  time,  lose  no  opportunity  of  dwelling  on  the 
spiritual  motive  which  should  underlie  their  musical  work, 
and  the  choir  must  inevitably  rise  to  a  better  performance 
of  its  duties."  If  the  pastor  will  study  the  requirements  of 
his  choir,  anticipate  its  needs  and  provide  for  them,  com- 
prehend its  problems  and  contribute  intelligently  to  their 
solution, — in  a  word,  will  recognize  the  choir  as  an  integral 


318  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

part  of  the  church  life,  he  will  have  no  difficulty  in  se- 
curing the  loyal  support  of  its  members. 

In  the  regular  Sabbath  services  where  the  ordinary 
forms  of  worship  are  used,  the  choir  and  the  pastor  ought 
to  cooperate  intelligently.  The  pastor  should  decide 
what  shall  be  the  general  trend  of  each  service — not  only 
the  general  thought  underlying  it  all,  but  also  the  general 
feeling  and  key-note  of  emotion  governing  it  all, — in  order 
that  the  choir  may  adapt  their  selections  to  his  general 
plan.  Then  each  service  becomes  a  unit — not  mechan- 
ically, but  spiritually  a  unit — making  possible  an  impres- 
sion upon  a  congregation  which  could  not  possibly 
be  reached  by  a  miscellaneous  and  an  unorganized  serv- 
ice. I  have  already  suggested  in  a  detailed  way  how  this 
can  be  done,  and  need  not  recall  those  plans  at  this 
place. 

But  the  resourceful  and  aggressive  pastor  will  not  be 
satisfied  to  repeat  the  same  general  outline  of  service 
Sabbath  after  Sabbath.  He  will  sometimes  emphasize 
the  sermon,  curtailing  the  other  exercises  in  order  to 
give  some  large  subject  the  benefit  of  the  needed  time. 
At  another  time,  he  will  emphasize  the  song  element  of 
the  service,  and  call  the  choir  to  his  help  in  impressing, 
by  means  of  anthem,  hymn,  and  solo,  some  general  truth 
that  finds  its  best  expression  through  the  emotional 
power  of  music.  Again  he  will  emphasize  the  responsive 
passages  from  the  Scriptures  filled  with  praise  and  prayer,  in 
which  the  choir  can  be  very  useful,  adapting  their  selec- 
tions to  his  purposes.  Thus  from  Sunday  to  Sunday  the 
preacher  will  vary  his  services  and  avoid  the  sense  of 
monotony  and  fixedness  of  plan,  which  does  so  much  to 
callous  the  minds  and  hearts  of  a  congregation  against 
spiritual  truth. 


THE  MINISTER  AND  THE  CHOIR  319 

In  all  of  these  efforts  he  will  need  the  services  and 
loyal  cooperation  of  a  choir  which  will  be  as  ready  to 
restrain  itself  and  curtail  its  responsibilities,  as  to  increase 
the  amount  of  work  it  is  expected  to  do.  Of  course,  there 
must  be  mutual  consideration,  patience,  and  kindly  feel- 
ing. The  suggestions  of  the  pastor  will  not  be  expressed 
in  a  dictatorial  and  domineering  way,  nor  will  the  choir 
resent  additional  work  that  may  be  thrown  upon  them 
because  of  the  plans  outlined  by  the  pastor.  They  are 
all  working  towards  the  same  general  end,  and  anything 
that  adds  to  the  efficiency  of  either  will  serve  the  interests 
of  both. 

It  follows,  therefore,  that  the  pastor  shall  be  recognized 
as  the  final  authority  in  the  selection  of  hymns,  tunes, 
anthems,  responses,  Gospel  hymns,  solos, — whatever  may 
be  used  in  the  public  congregation.  But  this  authority 
should  be  used  in  the  most  tactful  and  gracious  way. 
Knowing  just  what  he  wants,  let  the  pastor  have  a  frank 
and  kindly  understanding  with  his  choir  leader  and  or- 
ganist, letting  them  suggest  the  best  means  and  methods 
of  realizing  his  wishes.  Musical  people  are  sensitive  peo- 
ple the  world  over ;  they  would  not  be  musical  if  they 
were  not  sensitive.  You  rarely  or  never  find  a  musical 
soul  encased  in  a  thick  skin.  Hence  these  musicians 
must  be  handled  carefully  and  kindly.  A  little  honest 
praise  and  appreciation  of  their  past  efforts  will  be  a 
happy  preface  to  securing  their  hearty  and  enthusiastic 
support  in  the  new  plans  proposed.  Let  the  pastor  win 
his  choir  personally,  advise  with  its  members,  accept  their 
suggestions,  even  in  regard  to  his  own  part  of  the  service, 
where  he  can,  and  he  will  add  very  largely  to  his  effective 
working  forces. 

The  initiative  must  come  from  the  pastor,  if  this  kindly 


320  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

relation  is  to  exist  between  him  and  the  choir.  He  must 
make  the  advances,  he  must  supply  the  interest,  the 
geniality,  the  basis  of  reciprocal  feeling.  Once  the  choir 
feels  that  it  is  the  apple  of  the  pastor's  eye ;  that  he  is  as 
much  interested  in  its  work  as  in  the  Sunday-school,  or  in 
the  Young  People's  Society,  or  in  the  mid-week  prayer- 
meeting,  that  he  is  working  for  its  interest  in  the  official 
board,  among  the  congregation,  before  the  general  public, 
there  will  be  no  lack  of  responsive  loyalty  and  coopera- 
tion on  their  part.  If  he  finds  the  needed  soprano  or 
other  singer,  so  long  desired,  if  he  personally  persuades 
some  important  singer  who  has  been  standing  off  to  join, 
if  the  echoes  of  his  praise  of  their  work  among  the  peo- 
ple rings  delightfully  in  the  ears  of  the  choir,  if  he 
voluntarily  suggests  a  public  offering  for  their  expenses, 
and  urges  generosity  upon  his  congregation  in  view  of 
the  great  value  and  devotion  of  the  singers,  he  can  ask  al- 
most anything  at  their  hands  and  they  will  respond  with 
enthusiasm. 

It  is  extremely  important  to  the  spiritual  success  of  the 
public  services  that  the  choir  singers  and  organist  co- 
operate with  the  pastor  in  making  them  genuinely  devout. 
But  how  can  they  do  so  if  they  are  not  themselves 
genuinely  devout  ?  One  of  the  most  important  tasks  of 
the  aggressive  pastor,  therefore,  is  to  take  the  choir  in 
hand  and  thoroughly  spiritualize  it,  influencing  the  very 
springs  of  its  action,  inculcating  high  ideals  and  earnest 
purposes  and  appealing  to  the  deepest  spiritual  impulses. 
This  cannot  be  done  by  any  quick  mechanical  process. 
He  must  pray  for  it  privately  and  in  public,  pray  with  it 
in  its  rehearsals.  He  must  talk  to  the  individuals  of  his 
choir,  and  to  the  choir  as  a  whole,  as  he  has  opportunity, 
not  in  a  sharp,  critical,  unsympathetic  way,  not  with  a  per- 


THE  MINISTER  AND  THE  CHOIR  321 

functory  cant  and  a  mechanical  professionalism  that 
devitalize  the  truth  he  utters,  but  with  a  deep,  sincere 
feeling  that  will  compel  responsiveness,  about  the  relig- 
ious value  of  the  work  of  the  choir  and  the  blessed  op- 
portunity given  it  to  comfort  and  inspire  its  hearers. 
His  own  spiritual  desires  must  have  the  sincerity  and 
depth,  that  will  give  them  contagious  power  with  the 
choir  director  and  organist  with  whom  he  confers  and  ad- 
vises. If  the  choir  is  to  be  a  spiritual  force,  the  minister 
must  see  to  it  that  the  choir  is  genuinely  spiritual,  for  in 
spiritual  hydrostatics  as  well  as  in  physical,  the  stream 
does  not  rise  higher  than  its  source.  I  hear  many  a  min- 
ister repeat  the  laugh  of  Sarah  over  the  idea  of  spiritualiz- 
ing the  choir ;  but  not  only  must  it  be  done  if  the  choir  is 
to  be  properly  utilized,  but  it  can  be  done,  as  has  been 
often  proved,  if  the  pastor  has  the  quickening  faith  of 
Abraham. 


XIV 
SUBSTITUTES  FOR  THE  CHOIR 

BUT  many  ministers  during  the  early  years  of  their 
ministry    occupy    charges    where    the    musical 
resources  do  not  warrant  the  organization  of  a 
choir.     What  shall  be  done  ? 

Even  where  a  formal  choir  with  its  four  parts  well 
balanced,  is  not  possible,  musical  conditions  must  be  at  a 
desperately  low  ebb,  if  other  possibilities  are  not  open  to 
the  aggressive  minister  determined  to  make  his  musical 
service  the  best  possible.  In  many  churches  there  is  a 
large  instrumental  power  lying  about  undeveloped  and 
unapplied.  In  some  congregations  a  very  fair  amateur 
orchestra  could  easily  be  organized  which  would  add 
very  much  to  the  interest  of  special  occasions.  In  others 
a  string  band  of  violins,  mandolins,  and  guitars  would  in- 
terest persons  who  now  feel  that  they  are  not  wanted  in 
church  work.  An  extra  reed  organ  or  piano  could  be 
rented  occasionally,  not  only  for  concerts,  but  for  special 
Christmas,  Easter,  and  other  services,  and  four  and  eight- 
handed  arrangements  rendered  with  good  effect. 

There  is  a  mine  in  the  Sunday-school  with  its  young 
people  and  children  that  is  rarely  or  never  worked.  A 
young  people's  choir  could  be  formed  in  almost  any 
school,  none  of  whose  members  would  exceed  the  age  of 
seventeen,  who  could  easily  be  taught  to  sing  simple 
songs  in  a  way  that  would  interest  and  help  in  the  public 
service.     A  boys',  a  girls',  or  a  children's  choir,  singing  in 

322 


SUBSTITUTES  FOE  THE  CHOIR  323 

unison  or  in  two  parts,  would  certainly  prove  an  attract- 
ive and  inspiring  feature  for  any  service  or  meeting. 
There  are  very  few  schools  in  which  there  would  be  any 
difficulty  in  organizing  these  young  singers,  and  in  most 
cases  they  would  be  delighted  to  help.  An  experienced 
choir  leader  was  told  by  a  clergyman  that  he  was 
thoroughly  disgusted  with  the  incompetent  precentor 
whom  he  had,  and  asked  whether  there  was  anything  that 
could  be  done  with  the  resources  at  his  command. 
There  were  not  enough  competent  singers  in  the  congre- 
gation to  form  an  adult  choir,  but  a  canvass  of  the  Sunday- 
school  revealed  an  abundance  of  material.  Twenty-five 
girls  from  eight  to  sixteen  years  of  age  were  put  in 
training  and  taught  a  large  number  of  standard  hymns 
and  a  few  chants  and  anthems.  When  they  made  their 
appearance  the  congregation  was  greatly  delighted  with 
the  results  and  the  choir  continued  in  service  for  many 
years. 

Indeed  this  method  may  be  effectively  used  even  where 
there  is  a  large  adult  choir.  At  the  Chicago  Avenue 
Church  (Moody's  former  church)  they  have  a  great 
choir  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  singers 
which  makes  splendid  music,  furnishing  anthems  of  high 
grade.  But  in  spite  of  this  magnificent  musical  help,  they 
have  selected  the  best  singers  among  the  boys  and  girls 
of  the  Sunday-school  and  formed  them  into  a  children's 
choir  that  sings  at  least  one  number  at  every  Sunday 
morning  service.  These  fresh  voices  in  the  back  gallery 
have  remarkable  charm,  and  the  large  congregations 
listen  with  breathless  interest  and  delight. 

In  such  a  children's  choir  it  is  easy  to  create  an  esprit 
de  corps  that  stimulates  loyalty  and  regular  attendance. 
In  most  churches  this  choir  should  be  asked  to  sing  at 


324  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

only  one  service  each  Sunday.  In  some  it  may  be  wise 
to  limit  their  use  to  a  monthly  service. 

When  no  regular  choir  can  be  organized  because 
the  competent  singers  in  the  congregation  have  other 
prominent  engagements  or  duties,  or  by  reason  of  frail 
health  are  unable  to  sing  in  the  choir  regularly,  these 
musical  forces  can  be  used  in  an  occasional  way  and  thus 
variety,  freshness,  and  novelty  are  added  to  the  musical 
service  of  the  church.  They  may  be  organized  into  a 
quartet  or  other  organization,  and  so  be  made  to  feel 
that  they  are  part  of  the  working  forces  of  the  church, 
even  if  they  do  not  sing  regularly. 

There  is  no  reason  why  a  pastor  should  not  oc- 
casionally import  musical  help  from  other  congregations. 
There  are  frequently  soloists  or  musical  organizations  of 
a  secular  character  that  would  be  very  glad  to  supply 
music  for  a  single  service  without  charge.  It  will  be  en- 
tirely legitimate,  it  seems  to  me,  to  make  a  feature  of 
such  extra  help,  to  announce  it  widely  and  create  antici- 
patory interest  among  the  people ;  but  the  preacher  will 
be  put  upon  his  mettle  to  prevent  the  infection  of  the 
secular  concert  spirit  under  such  circumstances. 

In  almost  every  congregation  there  are  singers  who 
receive  little  or  no  recognition.  There  may  be  some 
elderly  gentleman  who  was  once  recognized  as  a  great 
singer,  but  who  has  been  neglected  by  the  younger 
musical  forces,  because  he  does  not  belong  to  their  day 
and  generation.  There  may  be  some  family  in  which 
there  are  brothers  and  sisters  who  could  form  a  quartet 
that  would  be  effective  for  occasional  use.  Here  and 
there  is  some  remarkable  voice  among  the  children  that 
could  be  used  for  special  solos.  The  children's  organiza- 
tions    of    the    church,    such    as    "Junior    Band,"    or 


SUBSTITUTES  FOE  THE  CHOIR  325 

"  Gleaners'  Band,"  or  "  Boys'  Brigade,"  or  some  par- 
ticularly musical  class  in  the  Sunday-school,  may  be  used 
to  add  variety  and  zest  to  the  public  service. 

Where  no  choir  can  be  organized  or  sustained,  the 
demands  of  the  congregation  are  usually  not  very  severe. 
Special  Gospel  songs  by  a  little  band  of  children  or  of 
adults  will  have  the  same  value,  comparatively  speaking, 
as  the  more  elaborate  music  in  a  church  of  large  musical 
resources.  It  is  fortunate  that  the  congregation  with  the 
one  talent  of  musical  ability  is  as  well  satisfied  and  as 
responsive  to  its  exercise  as  is  the  five  talent  congrega- 
tion with  its  privileges.  No  preacher  is  justified  in  tak- 
ing defeat  for  granted  because  his  resources  are  less  than 
those  of  his  more  fortunately  placed  brethren. 


Part  V 
Practical  Applications  of  Church  Music 


THE  SONG  SERMON 

NO  one  will  deny  that  variety  adds  interest  and 
that  routine  dissipates  it.  That  is  a  common- 
place so  bald  that  the  average  preacher  would 
resent  it  as  an  insult  to  his  intelligence  to  dwell  on  it. 
Yet  that  same  minister  will  have  two  church  services 
every  Sunday  in  the  year  as  exactly  alike  as  two  peas  in 
a  pod,  and  will  then  complain  that  not  only  outsiders,  but 
his  own  people  as  well,  fail  to  attend  both.  In  some 
churches  the  morning  service  is  largely  attended,  while 
the  evening  service  attracts  but  a  few.  In  other  com- 
munities the  evening  service  is  the  centre  of  interest. 

Does  not  the  very  statement  of  the  facts  suggest  that 
these  communities  will  only  support  properly  a  single 
service  such  as  we  call  regular,  and  is  it  not  easy  to  take 
the  next  step  and  infer — not,  as  we  practically  do  in 
summer-time  in  our  cities,  that  a  second  service  is  un- 
necessary— but  that  the  second  service  should  be 
different  in  method  and  character  ? 

I  look  in  vain  through  my  Bible  to  find  any  rule, 
Jewish  or  Christian,  making  two  exactly  similar  services 
every  Sunday  obligatory.  Our  church  disciplines  con- 
tain no  law  requiring  them.  And  yet  probably  a 
hundred  thousand  preachers  in  this  land  lay  upon  them- 
selves the  burden  of  preparing  two  sermons  each  week, 
when  one  probably  would  be  amply  sufficient.  Just 
think    of  a  hundred   thousand   useless   sermons   every 

329 


330  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

Sunday  !  Take  the  time  and  energy  they  represent,  and 
put  half  of  them  into  the  improvement  and  strengthen- 
ing of  the  other  hundred  thousand  sermons.  If  the 
other  half  of  this  wasted  energy  were  put  into  additional 
pastoral  work,  into  church  management,  into  the  fuller 
control  and  development  of  the  working  forces  of  the 
congregation,  what  an  improvement  there  would  be  in 
their  life  and  work  !  I  really  think  that  many  churches 
would  be  better  off  if  they  had  but  one  church  service 
every  Sunday. 

But  there  is  a  better  way :  instead  of  reproducing  the 
staid  morning  service  with  its  program  as  fixed  as  if  it 
were  a  ritual  sanctified  by  age  and  tradition,  let  the 
evening  service  have  a  wide  liberty,  taking  many  forms 
and  employing  many  methods,  but  emphasizing  chiefly 
evangelistic  work  among  the  unsaved. 

Little  by  little,  many  of  our  churches  have  confined 
all  their  hopes  and  efforts  for  the  salvation  of  the  un- 
saved to  their  Sunday-school  scholars.  Not  long  ago  I 
heard  a  minister  say  publicly,  that  it  was  impossible  to 
get  any  conversions  outside  of  the  Sunday-school,  and 
he  deprecated  any  efforts  to  secure  the  attendance  of 
adults  at  a  revival  service  that  was  contemplated.  In  a 
sense  he  was  right,  for  at  his  evening  services  he  had  an 
empty  house,  no  efforts  having  been  made  to  attract  the 
unsaved  people  of  the  community. 

The  aggressive,  versatile,  musical  pastor  has  no 
difficulty  in  filling  his  evening  services  with  unconverted 
people.  He  baits  his  hook  for  them,  and  they  come  in 
throngs.  It  is  no  particular  miracle  that  his  church 
grows  by  leaps  and  bounds,  for  when  his  revival  meet- 
ings begin  it  is  easy  fishing  in  that  crowded  evening 
service.     The  Sunday-school  and  the  evening  congrega- 


THE  SONG  SERMON  331 

tion  are  the  two  feeders  of  the  church,  are  its  two  oppor- 
tunities for  building  up  the  life  and  working  strength  of 
the  congregation. 

This  is  no  place  for  the  further  discussion  of  the 
evening  service.  What  I  have  said  has  only  been  an  in- 
troduction to  the  survey  of  methods  for  making  the 
musical  forces  of  the  church  available  for  the  develop- 
ment and  strengthening  of  the  evening  service,  in  order 
that  it  may  accomplish  its  mission  of  winning  the  un- 
saved. Some  of  them  deserve  more  extensive  treatment 
than  I  have  space  to  give  them,  but  a  few  hints  may 
prove  valuable  by  provoking  thought  and  suggesting 
that  the  wheels  will  still  run  smoothly,  even  if  the  rut 
is  forsaken. 

In  a  previous  chapter  I  suggested  that  a  wise  preacher 
will  vary  his  services,  making  the  purpose  of  each  service 
the  arbiter  of  its  form,  method,  and  content.  Some  serv- 
ices will  have  little  music,  and  much  sermon,  because  the 
subject  demands  more  time  for  the  consideration  of  its 
theme,  while  others  will  have  a  great  amount  of  music 
and  a  very  short  sermon.  From  the  latter  it  is  but  a 
short  step  to  the  song  sermon,  a  wonderfully  effective 
form  of  service  that  ought  to  be  used  more  widely  than 
it  now  is. 

In  such  a  program  the  usual  sermon  is  scattered  among 
the  musical  numbers  and  the  music  in  turn  becomes  a 
part  of  the  sermon.  Such  a  service  has  novelty  enough 
to  attract  a  large  audience  without  any  sensationalism 
that  will  offend  fastidious  people.  It  gives  the  oppor- 
tunity for  wide  participation  on  the  part  of  the  church, 
so  much  desired  in  recent  years,  for  not  only  all  the 
recognized  musical  persons  of  the  church  will  be  drawn 
into  active  cooperation,  but  also  the  whole  congregation. 


332  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

It  meets  the  needs  of  those  undisciplined  minds  that  find 
sustained  attention  to  a  long  sermon  impossible.  It  ap- 
peals to  the  emotional  natures  of  our  average  congrega- 
tions much  more  powerfully  than  can  any  sermon  to  their 
minds.  It  makes  possible  the  treatment  of  some  subjects 
of  a  tender  and  sympathetic  character  that  no  regular 
sermon  can  successfully  present.  The  emotional  aspects 
of  other  important  themes  can  be  brought  out  in  a  way 
few  pastors  would  be  willing  to  attempt  in  a  regular  dis- 
course. 

Of  course,  there  are  men  who  live  in  a  thin,  serene  at- 
mosphere of  intellectual  interest,  who  deprecate  any  ap- 
peal to  the  sentiments  and  hence  would  seriously  object 
to  the  song  sermon  and  its  proposed  effects.  I  remem- 
ber that  while  a  student  in  college  I  read  an  essay  on 
a  public  occasion  on  "  Emotional  Culture  "  at  the  close 
of  which  the  professor  of  mathematics  came  forward  with 
unwonted  emotion  to  express  his  disapproval  of  my 
proposition.  He  had  by  nature  a  tender  heart  and  a 
temper  that  was  at  least  warm,  but  for  all  we  students 
knew,  he  had  for  a  heart  nothing  but  a  parchment  writ- 
ten over  with  algebraic  formulae  and  geometrical  proposi- 
tions, so  thoroughly  had  he  restrained  and  atrophied  his 
sentimental  nature. 

But  I  assume  that  my  readers  are  red-blooded  men 
who  believe  that  God  knew  what  He  was  doing  when  He 
made  the  emotions  an  essential  part  of  our  natures,  and 
who  are  willing  to  accept  the  limitations  and  utilize  the 
powers  of  these  emotions  as  freely  as  they  do  those  of 
the  intellect.  The  song  sermon  is  an  appeal  to  the  emo- 
tional nature,  if  properly  planned  and  conducted,  and  it 
is  as  such  that  it  has  a  value  and  an  effectiveness  that  I 
emphasize  and  commend. 


THE  SONG  SEEMON  333 

The  exercises  introductory  to  such  a  song  sermon 
should  be  worshipful,  of  course,  but  should  be  in  absolute 
harmony  of  feeling  with  it.  If  "  Marching  Orders  "  is 
the  aggressive  missionary  theme,  there  may  be  a  magnifi- 
cent Te  Deum,  Venite  or  Jubilate  by  the  choir,  and  ju- 
bilant hymns  of  devotion,  such  as  "  Hark !  ten  thousand 
harps  and  voices,"  or  "  Oh,  could  I  speak  the  matchless 
worth,"  by  the  congregation.  If  the  theme  is  M  Songs  in 
the  Night,"  the  opening  service  will  be  still  worshipful, 
but  sweet  and  tender,  harmonizing  with  the  consolation 
and  comfort  brought  to  those  who  sing  songs  in  the  night 
of  affliction,  sorrow,  and  difficulty.  An  anthem  on  the 
text,  "  Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  children,"  will  be 
eminently  fitting,  and  such  hymns  as  "  O  God,  our  help 
in  ages  past,"  "  The  King  of  love  my  shepherd  is,"  or 
"  Lord,  we  come  before  Thee  now,"  will  combine  worship 
with  the  humility  and  tenderness  the  theme  calls  for  in 
the  introduction. 

The  choice  of  the  theme  is  very  important.  Historical 
subjects  are  out  of  the  question,  as  are  also  those  that  are 
purely  didactic.  As  already  suggested,  there  must  be  a 
certain  emotional  content  in  order  to  give  the  song  ele- 
ment something  to  express.  u  Joy  in  Christ  "  would  be 
entirely  practicable,  but  "  The  Joy  of  Trust "  would  be 
too  limited  in  scope,  as  it  probably  would  not  be  possible 
to  find  the  materials  with  which  to  cover  the  points  one 
would  care  to  discuss  under  that  theme.  Perhaps  the 
wisest  plan  is  to  take  some  very  general  theme, — "  Salva- 
tion," "  Coming  to  Christ,"  "  Consecration,"  "  The  Holy 
War,"  "  In  the  Vineyard,"  «  Trusting  Christ,"  "  The  Di- 
vine Love,"  "  Watchfulness,"  "  Prayer  and  Its  Answer," 
"  Perseverance  of  the  Saints,"  "  Sustaining  Grace,"  "  The 
Way  to  Calvary," — and  go  over  the  musical  resources  at 


334  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

hand.  It  may  be  found  that  some  of  these  subjects  can 
be  subdivided,  limiting  them  more  definitely,  and  so  mak- 
ing them  more  striking  and  impressive.  If  the  preacher 
does  not  know  the  resources  of  the  choir,  he  had  better 
formulate  and  analyze  several  subjects  and  submit  them 
to  the  choir  leader  who  can  decide  for  which  of  them  he 
can  furnish  the  most  and  best  illustrative  music :  solos, 
duets,  quartets,  and  other  concerted  numbers. 

The  preacher  who  has  acquired  the  analytical  habit  of 
mind  will  be  in  danger  of  laying  out  his  plans  too  logic- 
ally. The  treatment  should  not  be  minutely  analytical, 
but  sketchy  in  character.  Here  is  no  place  for  the  Dutch 
artist's  love  of  minute  detail  in  development,  but  for  the 
impressionistic  style  of  art,  with  here  a  line  and  there  a 
line,  bringing  out  the  essential  and  characteristic  features, 
and  leaving  the  rest  to  a  quickened  imagination.  The 
resources  in  hymn-book  and  choir  repertoire  are  too  gen- 
eral in  matter  for  anything  more  than  a  suggestive  de- 
velopment. 

Let  me  emphasize  that  a  closely  logical  treatment  of 
the  subject  is  not  possible.  There  should  be  just  enough 
logical  form  to  satisfy  the  sense  of  symmetry.  The  more 
important  matter  is  the  transition  from  one  point  to  an- 
other and  the  clear  relation  of  a  musical  number  to  what 
precedes,  to  what  follows,  or,  better  yet,  to  both.  While 
the  treatment  must  have  progress,  that  progress  should 
be  emotional  rather  than  logical.  There  should  be  cli- 
maxes of  interest,  but  each  climax  a  distinct  advance 
upon  the  one  that  went  before. 

The  hymns  and  other  musical  numbers  selected  may 
be  used  in  two  ways :  to  present  the  points  of  develop- 
ment directly,  or  to  illustrate  them.  The  former  is  some- 
what the  more  effective,  but  the  latter  the  more  con- 


THE  SONG  SEKMON  335 

venient,  for  it  makes  possible  the  use  of  subjects  other- 
wise impossible.  Many  a  hymn  or  song,  that  on  the 
surface  would  have  little  relevancy,  can  be  used  with  good 
results,  simply  as  an  illustration  of  a  phase  of  a  much 
more  extensive  thought  developed  by  the  preacher's 
comment.  Most  hymns  are  so  general  in  their  thought, 
that  it  may  be  necessary  to  ignore  all  but  a  single  stanza 
or  line,  or  even  phrase,  and  to  develop  the  thought  of  that 
alone.  In  this  way  a  single  hymn  may  be  used  at  differ- 
ent times  to  directly  suggest,  or  indirectly  to  illustrate, 
many  different  points. 

Indeed,  only  in  this  way  can  the  necessary  emotional 
progress  be  secured  in  many  cases,  for  the  direct  emo- 
tional value  of  a  leading  division  of  thought  may  be  less 
than  that  of  others  that  have  preceded  it,  and  it  will 
therefore  peremptorily  demand  such  emotional  supple- 
menting. Here  is  the  place  for  fertility  of  mind,  quick- 
ness of  apprehension  and  readiness  of  adaptation.  For 
some  men  there  will  be  an  embarrassment  of  riches  of 
material  to  be  used,  while  others  will  vainly  seek  an  ade- 
quate amount  on  any  given  subject. 

In  the  selection  of  the  music  great  care  must  be  taken 
to  provide  variety.  The  congregation  should  have  at 
least  one-third,  if  not  one-half,  of  the  program  in  familiar 
hymns  and  songs.  The  choir  should  have  perhaps  half 
of  what  remains  for  purely  chorus  work.  The  rest  of  the 
program  may  be  made  up  of  solo  numbers  for  one  or 
more  parts. 

No  set,  artistic  music  should  be  allowed.  We  are  not 
discussing  an  artistic  sacred  concert,  but  a  song  sermon, 
in  which  the  matter  and  manner  are  subordinated  to 
the  result  to  be  reached.  Avoid  music  that  the  congre- 
gation  cannot   appreciate.     Sesquipedalian  words   have 


336  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

their  uses,  but  the  wise  preacher  avoids  them  ;  to  speak 
electrically,  they  break  the  circuit  and  the  power  is 
wasted.  The  same  thing  is  true  musically,  for  sesqui- 
pedalian music  is  always  a  circuit-breaker  in  a  general 
congregation. 

The  chosen  hymns,  responsive  readings,  songs,  anthems, 
solos,  and  other  matter  having  been  arranged,  it  remains 
for  the  preacher  to  weld  them  all  together  into  a  unified 
whole.  He  will  read  so  much  of  the  hymns  as  serves 
his  purpose,  illustrating  with  anecdotes  and  historical  or 
personal  events,  and  emphasizing  the  thought  as  he  pro- 
ceeds. He  will  read  or  quote  passages  of  Scripture  that 
are  germane  in  thought  and  feeling.  He  will  read  the 
texts  of  the  music  sung  by  the  choir  and  by  the  soloists 
and  bring  to  bear  the  thoughts  conveyed  and  the  feel- 
ing expressed.  Not  that  he  is  to  talk  incessantly  and 
lengthily,  but  he  must  use  all  his  resources  of  eloquence 
and  music  to  make  a  definite  spiritual  impression. 

He  should  avoid  a  spiritless,  mechanical  treatment  as 
he  would  sin.  Sometimes  he  will  announce  the  song  first 
with  only  a  few  introductory  words,  and  make  his  appli- 
cation of  it  afterwards.  Again  he  will  make  his  remarks 
before  he  announces  the  song,  or  it  may  best  suit  his 
purpose  to  introduce  his  discussion  between  the  verses. 
Varied,  sprightly,  glowing,  anecdotal,  or  epigrammatic 
treatment  in  a  free,  spontaneous  way  is  what  is  needed. 
A  little  practice  in  this  line  might  lift  some  of  our 
preachers  out  of  the  deep  rut  of  routine  in  which  the 
wheels  of  their  usual  discourse  drag  so  heavily. 

Heavy,  phlegmatic,  ponderous-minded  men  will  find 
such  a  method  of  work  very  difficult,  for  it  calls  for 
great  versatility,  pliability,  and  readiness  of  discourse.  It 
calls   for  light,  deft  touches.     It  is  sharpshooting,  not 


THE  SONG  SEEMON  337 

bombardment.  There  is  no  time  for  acquiring  the  mo- 
mentum the  best  minds  of  the  phlegmatic  type  find 
necessary,  for  while  the  preacher  may  occupy  more  than 
half  the  time  of  the  service,  only  rarely  ought  he  to  talk 
uninterruptedly  for  five  minutes. 

Awkward  pauses  must  be  absolutely  avoided.  The 
organist  must  have » his  fingers  on  the  key  and  the  choir 
must  be  ready  to  sing  as  soon  as  they  can  catch  the 
pitch  when  the  minister  gives  the  signal  of  glance  or 
position.  The  choir  leader  and  organist  each  must  have 
a  program  in  hand  and  keep  close  watch  upon  it  so  as  to 
be  ready  to  the  second  when  the  preacher  calls  for  the 
music. 

Such  a  service  ought  not  to  be  too  long.  Three 
anthems,  five  hymns,  and  two  or  three  solos  or  duets,  or 
whatever  else  is  provided,  will  be  ample.  The  very  in- 
tensity of  such  a  service  is  apt  to  bring  on  a  reaction  if 
it  is  continued  too  long.  The  bow  that  is  strung  too 
tightly  will  break  here  as  elsewhere. 

In  the  foregoing  discussion,  I  have  taken  the  coopera- 
tion of  a  choir  for  granted.  But  the  choir  is  by  no 
means  essential  to  the  success  of  a  song  sermon.  Some 
of  the  most  satisfactory  song  sermons  I  have  ever  given 
depended  entirely  upon  the  congregation  for  musical 
support.  The  lack  of  variety  was  the  only  drawback, 
but  that  was  fully  made  up  by  the  absence  of  the  stiffness 
and  self-consciousness  which  solo  and  choir  numbers  are 
apt  to  introduce.  There  is  more  spontaneity  when  the 
congregation  does  all  the  singing  and  the  critical  attitude 
so  fatal  to  emotional  results  does  not  appear. 

Not  as  a  model,  but  as  a  practical  illustration  of  a 
song  sermon,  may  I  outline  one  I  recently  gave  to  a 
popular  audience  ?     I  used  the  general  subject,  "  Come ! " 


338  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

I  divided  it  broadly  into  "  God's  '  Come '  to  the  Unsaved," 
"  God's  '  Come  '  to  the  Backslider,"  "  God's  ■  Come '  to  the 
Christian,"  and  "  God's  ■  Come '  to  Reward."  As  an  intro- 
duction I  suggested  "  God's  *  Come '  to  Worship,"  singing 
Heber's  "  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  Almighty."  At 
the  close  of  the  first  verse,  I  reconstructed  with  as  few 
and  vivid  words  as  possible  the  picture  of  the  heavenly 
adoration  as  given  by  John  the  Revelator,  and  I  am  sure 
that  the  congregation  sang,  with  a  clearer  sense  of  the 
real  sublimity  of  the  lines,  the  stanza, 


"Holy,  holy,  holy  !     All  the  saints  adore  Thee, 

Casting  down  their  golden  crowns  around  the  glassy  sea ; 
Cherubim  and  seraphim  falling  down  before  Thee 
Which  wert,  and  art,  and  evermore  shalt  be." 


After  the  hymn  the  pastor  read  Matthew  1 1 :  25-30 
and  led  in  a  prayer  of  mingled  worship  and  thankfulness 
for  God's  Open  Door  of  Mercy.  After  the  offering  and 
announcements  I  took  up  the  main  theme.  I  had  no 
choir  or  I  should  have  sung  an  anthem  based  on  the  text, 
"  The  Spirit  and  the  Bride  say  come."  We  sang  instead 
"  Sinners  Jesus  will  receive,"  having  the  women  sing  the 
stanzas  while  the  men  joined  in  the  chorus.  I  quoted 
from  memory  a  number  of  passages  of  invitation,  told 
illustrative  anecdotes,  and  led  up  to  the  well-known  song 
with  music  by  Stebbins,  "  Jesus  is  Calling."  Had  I  had 
a  men's  quartet  I  should  have  had  them  sing  "  Come  to 
the  Cross." 

In  introducing  the  second  part  of  my  theme,  I  drew  a 
picture  of  the  backslider  with  as  fine  a  definition  as  my 
mental  lens  will  allow,  emphasizing  the  sinfulness  of  back- 
sliding with   the   appropriate   passages   from   the  tenth 


THE  SONG  SEEMON  339 

chapter  of  Hebrews,  and  bringing  out  God's  long-suffer- 
ing and  patience  as  illustrated  in  Hosea  14:  1-7.  I  had 
the  congregation  sing  "  Just  as  I  am,"  stopping  them  to 
interpolate  a  few  tender  incidents  as  the  several  verses 
were  sung.  Then  I  tried  to  protray  the  joy  of  the  re- 
turned wanderer  and  we  sang  Hoffman's  "  What  a 
Wonderful  Saviour  "  with  great  earnestness  and  vigour. 

Then  I  took  up  God's  call  to  the  Christian  to  a  larger, 
fuller,  richer  experience.  I  announced  Newton's  some- 
what old-fashioned  hymn,  "  How  tedious  and  tasteless  the 
hours,"  calling  up  tender  memories  of  the  religious  life  and 
experience  of  former  generations.  From  a  review  of  the 
past  I  directed  the  glance  of  the  hearers  to  the  triumph 
of  a  grace  yet  to  be  won  in  personal  experience,  and  we 
all  sang  together  "  More  love  to  Thee,  O  Christ." 

But  God's  "  Come  "  to  the  Christian  was  not  only  to 
inner  development  in  grace,  but  to  the  labour  and  battle 
connected  with  the  advancement  of  His  kingdom  on 
earth.  A  little  picture  of  the  great  army  of  God  keep- 
ing step  to  the  rhythm  of  the  unfolding  of  the  divine 
purpose,  a  little  reference  to  the  magnificent  music  of 
Sullivan,  an  allusion  to  the  wounded  bagpiper  leaning 
against  a  rock  and  piping  inspiring  martial  airs,  while  his 
Scotch  comrades  stormed  a  rocky  Himalayan  height,  and 
the  congregation  sang  "  Onward,  Christian  Soldiers  "  with 
extraordinary  vigour  and  spirit. 

It  was  an  easy  step  from  the  great  battle  to  the  rewards 
to  which  God  invites  us.  Perhaps  the  more  natural 
course  of  development  would  have  been  in  the  line  of  the 
splendour  of  victory,  illustrating  from  the  return  of  the 
armies  of  Napoleon  after  their  successful  wars,  or  the  even 
greater  glory  of  the  final  review  of  the  German  armies 
after  the   Franco-Prussian  war.    But  there  had  been  a 


340  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

good  deal  of  the  pomp  and  majesty  of  war  in  what  had 
preceded  and  it  was  time  the  element  of  pathos  was  in- 
troduced. So  I  spoke  of  the  many  voices  God  was  using 
to  call  us  to  heaven  :  how  our  tender  memories  of  the  loved 
ones  who  have  preceded  us  and  our  abiding  love  for  them 
responded  to  the  appeal  to  meet  them  when  life's  sun 
finally  sets.  My  soloist  sang,  with  spontaneous  tears  in 
his  voice,  the  popular  evangelistic  song, "  Tell  mother  I'll 
be  there  in  answer  to  her  prayer."  There  were  few  dry 
eyes  in  the  house  as  he  closed.  Then  we  sang  together 
"  There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight,"  closing  with  an  earnest, 
tender  prayer  and  the  benediction. 

This  song  sermon  covered  too  much  ground,  I  am 
frank  to  allow.  But  I  wished  to  "  find  "  everybody  pres- 
ent, and  it  was  my  only  opportunity.  Had  I  been  hold- 
ing a  series  of  song  sermon  evangelistic  services,  I  should 
have  changed  the  order  of  the  subdivisions  and  given 
each  of  them  an  evening.  There  is  so  much  matter 
available  for  each  of  them  that  there  would  be  no  diffi- 
culty in  thus  extending  the  theme. 

The  foregoing  example  of  a  song  sermon  was  based  on 
a  popular  hymnal ;  had  I  had  the"  Presbyterian  Hymnal," 
"  Sursum  Corda,"  or  "  The  Pilgrim  Hymnal  "  I  should 
have  made  an  entirely  different  program  for  the  same 
subject.  I  should  ask  the  organist  for  a  quiet  but  mass- 
ive voluntary.  The  "  Come  "  to  worship,  I  should  ex- 
press by  Ken's  "  Evening  Hymn  "  to  Tallis'  tune,  by 
Heber's  "  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  Almighty  "  to 
"  Nicaea,"  or  by  Grant's  "  Oh,  Worship  the  King  "  to 
Haydn's  "  Lyons,"  a  psalm  of  praise  read  responsively, 
a  prayer  of  worship  and  of  thankfulness  for  God's  per- 
sistent invitation,  and  by  an  anthem  of  praise  by  the  choir. 
The  organist  would  be  asked   to  give  in  his  offertory 


THE  SONG  SEKMON  341 

the  key-note  to  what  was  to  follow  by  playing  some- 
thing soft  and  expressive,  with  perhaps  a  minor  move- 
ment in  it. 

God's  "  Come  "  to  the  unsaved  would  be  prefaced  by 
a  clear  description  of  their  separation  from  God,  from  His 
infinite  stores  of  love  and  sympathy,  of  help  and  care, 
from  His  messages  of  mercy,  His  saints  on  earth,  His 
hosts  of  praise.  Then  the  congregation  would  sing 
"  Come,  ye  disconsolate."  After  a  few  words  of  urgent 
invitation  to  accept  Christ  they  would  be  asked  to  adopt 
the  great  hymn  of  Toplady,  "  Rock  of  Ages,"  as  their 
own  sentiment,  reading  it  with  earnest  tenderness. 
Without  announcement  the  choir  would  sing  Buck's  set- 
ting of  these  words. 

God's  "  Come  "  to  the  indifferent  or  renegade  Christian 
may  be  based  on  Scriptures  already  suggested.  The 
congregation  may  be  asked  to  sing  "  the  Backslider's 
hymn,"  "  Oh,  for  a  closer  walk  with  God,"  beginning 
perhaps  with  the  second  verse.  Or  some  sympathetic 
soloist  may  sing  "  Weary  of  earth,  and  laden  with  my 
sin  "  to  the  tune  found  in  the  hymnal,  or  with  some  other 
fitting  setting.  The  opening  of  the  door  that  had  been 
partly  or  entirely  closed  against  Christ  may  now  be  given 
expression  in  the  congregational  hymn,  "  O  Jesus,  Thou 
art  standing,"  to  Knecht's  "  St.  Edith,"  or  "  St.  Hulda," 
as  it  is  usually  called. 

In  the  development  of  God's  "  Come  "  to  Christians  to 
a  profounder  spiritual  life,  one  may  use  Watts'  "  Oh,  for 
a  faith  that  will  not  shrink,"  to  "  Rockingham,"  to  be  fol- 
lowed after  a  few  remarks  that  lead  up  to  it  by  a  solo  or 
choir  rendering  of  Adelaide  Proctor's  "  I  do  not  ask,  O 
Lord,  that  life  may  be,"  which  may  soon  be  followed  by 
the  congregation's  singing  of  Doddridge's  "  Awake,  my 


342  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

soul,  stretch  every  nerve,"  to  Handel's  ringing  tune, 
"  Christmas." 

God's  "  Come  "  to  the  Christian  inviting  him  to  service 
and  to  conflict  for  the  right  should  be  aggressively- 
developed.  The  congregation  should  by  this  time  be 
able  to  sing  Baring-Gould's  "  Onward,  Christian  Sol- 
diers "  with  great  vigour  to  Sullivan's  "  St.  Gertrude." 
Before  singing  the  second  verse  bring  out  the  spiritual 
unity  of  the  Church,  in  all  lands,  in  all  ages,  in  all  parts 
of  God's  universe.  The  song  of  praise  sung  by  the  saints 
as  they  march  to  victory  should  be  noted  in  the  last  verse. 

What  hymnic  illustration  is  chosen  for  God's  "  Come  " 
to  the  reward  must  depend  on  whether  this  military  ideal 
shall  be  carried  on.  If  it  is,  by  all  means  sing  Dean  Al- 
ford's  "  Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  "  to  Dyke's 
"  Alford."  The  historic  illustrations  for  this  hymn  hardly 
need  to  be  even  alluded  to.  If  the  more  general  idea  is  to 
be  used,  let  the  choir  sing  Barnby's  setting  of  Tennyson's 
"  Crossing  the  Bar,"  or  Ashford's  duet  to  the  same 
words.  This  will  illustrate  and  impress  the  passing  over 
and  the  welcome.  If  the  congregation  now  sings 
"  Jerusalem  the  Golden "  to  Ewing's  noble  tune,  the 
climax  will  be  reached. 

Now  sum  up  the  invitations  of  God  as  tenderly  as  may 
be  possible  to  you  and  then  ask  the  congregation  and 
choir  to  sing  Charlotte  Elliott's  "  Just  as  I  am,  without 
one  plea,"  as  indicating  their  individual  and  collective 
reply.     The  benediction  may  follow. 

In  both  these  programs,  I  have  given  only  the  thoughts 
that  have  immediate  relation  to  the  hymns.  A  great 
deal  of  illustrative,  didactic,  and  hortatory  matter  was 
included  in  the  body  of  the  interspersed  talks.  I  speak 
of  this  lest  the  impression  might  be  made  that  the  talk 


THE  SONG  SEEMON  343 

immediately  about  the  music  was  the  main  and  control- 
ling feature.  Quite  the  reverse  !  The  points  to  be  made 
and  enforced  are  the  controlling  factors  and  the  singing 
is  simply  contributory. 


II 

THE  SONG  SERVICE 

WHEN  a  minister  does  not  feel  that  he  has  the 
mental  or  musical  resources  for  a  full  song 
sermon,  he  can  still  get  some  sort  of  a  unified 
effect  from  a  song  service  which  has  a  general  subject, 
but  is  not  developed  in  a  logically  progressive  way. 
There  may  be  "  Evenings  with  the  Sacred  Poets,"  in  the 
course  of  which  all  the  leading  hymn-writers  from  Moses 
to  Fanny  Crosby  will  receive  consideration.  These  will 
give  opportunity  for  congregational  singing,  solos,  hymn 
anthems,  and  the  like. 

One  choir  I  know  of  sang  selections  from  Bradbury's 
cantata,  "  Esther,"  and  the  pastor  preached  a  short  ser- 
mon on  that  charming  character.  There  are  many  other 
Biblical  cantatas  and  even  oratorios,  such  as  "  Ruth," 
"  The  Feast  of  Belshazzar,"  M  Israel  in  Egypt," 
"  Joshua,"  and  others,  that  may  be  treated  in  the  same 
way.  One  pastor  who  had  a  large  chorus  choir  divided 
up  "  The  Messiah  "  into  sections,  using  Nos.  I  to  7  in- 
clusive for  Advent,  Nos.  8  to  17  inclusive  for  Christmas, 
Nos.  22  to  32  inclusive  for  Passion-tide,  Nos.  44  to  55 
inclusive  for  Easter,  Nos.  33  to  36  inclusive  and  Nos.  44 
and  55  to  the  end  for  Ascension  Day.  This  opens  out 
large  possibilities  with  other  oratorios. 

The  subject  may  be  a  more  general  one  and  treated 
very  much  like  a  song  sermon  except  that  there  is  no 
effort  to  arrange  the  selections  in  a  logical  order,  and  that 
there  is  little  or  no  talk  outside  of  the  comment  upon 

344 


THE  SONG  SERVICE  345 

the  numbers  rendered.  The  choir  can  reproduce  anthems 
sung  in  preceding  regular  services  and  the  soloists  can 
sing  effective  numbers  already  rendered.  By  choosing 
the  congregational  hymns  with  reference  to  the  theme  of 
the  service  and  by  appropriate  turns  of  thought  bringing 
some  sort  of  relation  between  the  subject  of  the  evening 
and  the  choir  and  solo  contributions,  a  certain  amount  of 
unity  may  be  secured. 

Perhaps  it  will  be  suggestively  helpful  to  give  a  report 
of  a  Thanksgiving  song  service  I  held  several  years  ago. 
The  pastor  asked  for  it  during  the  middle  of  the  week,  so 
I  had  but  one  rehearsal  with  the  chorus  choir.  Several 
anthems  of  praise  rendered  during  the  preceding  month 
were  freshened  up  and  a  new  one  was  learned.  I  went 
over  our  solo  work  during  the  same  time  and  selected 
what  I  could  fit  into  such  a  service.  As  two  of  our  solo- 
ists were  out  of  the  city  I  sent  them  word  to  supply  solos, 
trusting  to  Providence  that  they  would  prove  fitting. 
What  they  finally  brought  in  had  no  evident  relation  to 
Thanksgiving  at  all,  but  I  made  them  serve  the  purpose. 
The  general  idea  of  Thanksgiving  dominated  the  pro- 
gram, of  course,  but  there  was  no  effort  to  secure  relation 
between  the  separate  numbers.  It  is  because  the  ma- 
terials at  hand  were  so  untoward  and  unpromising  that  I 
call  up  that  particular  service. 

In  opening  the  service  I  suggested  that  as  the  minister 
was  the  mouthpiece  of  the  congregation  before  God  in 
prayer,  so  the  choir  was  its  representative  before  Him  in 
praise  ;  that  as  they  would  consider  it  irreverent  to  speak 
of  a  prayer  as  pretty,  or  pleasing,  so  I  wanted  them  to 
look  upon  the  numbers  of  the  choir,  not  as  enjoyable  or 
charming,  but  as  expressive  of  their  own  thanksgiving 
and  praise.     A  few  earnest  words  on  the  actual  divine 


346  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

presence  were  followed  by  the  "  Gloria  "  and  a  short 
Thanksgiving  invocation.  The  Forty-eighth  Psalm  was 
read  responsively,  to  which  succeeded  an  anthem,  "  The 
Lord  Reigneth."  The  congregational  hymn,  "  Lift  up 
the  gates  of  praise,"  was  followed  by  prayer  by  the  pastor. 
After  the  anthem,  "  Bonum  Est,"  another  responsive 
Psalm,  the  103d,  was  read. 

Up  to  this  point  there  had  been  general  praise  and 
thanksgiving  and  only  enough  comment  to  inspire 
thoughtfulness  and  sincerity.  Before  our  tenor  and 
soprano  sang  a  duet,  "  The  Lord  is  my  Shepherd,  no 
want  shall  I  know,"  I  referred  to  the  loyalty  of  a  sheep 
to  its  shepherd  and  how,  being  dumb,  its  eyes  yet  spoke 
of  appreciation  and  gratitude  for  tender  care  and  pro- 
vision. Though  it  was  a  brilliant  rendering,  there  was  no 
evidence  of  a  critical  attitude  in  the  congregation,  but  an 
earnest  responsiveness  to  the  message.  Then  I  had  a 
tenor  solo  on  "  My  Mother's  Prayer,"  illustrating  another 
reason  for  thanksgiving  :  religious  home  influences.  A 
tenor  and  alto  duet,  a  setting  of  Tennyson's  "  Crossing 
the  Bar,"  gave  another  solemn  and  pathetic  touch,  for  it 
was  made  the  basis  of  thanksgiving  that  we  should 
"  meet  our  Pilot  face  to  face  when  we  have  crossed  the 
bar."  A  soprano  soloist  immediately  sang  a  very  tender 
dream  of  heaven  in  a  spontaneous,  inspired  way  and  there 
was  thanksgiving  for  the  home  that  awaits  those  who  are 
faithful.  A  men's  quartet  sang  very  tenderly  "  Face  to 
Face  "  as  the  chief  joy  of  heaven  to  be  thankful  for  in 
advance.  Thus  the  most  inappropriate  numbers,  two  of 
them  brought  in  after  the  service  was  just  ready  to  begin, 
were  so  applied  and  commented  upon  that  they  became 
the  most  striking  and  impressive  parts  of  the  whole 
program. 


THE  SONG  SEEYICE  347 

After  a  half  hour  of  addresses — twice  as  long  as  was 
intended — expressions  of  thanksgiving  by  representatives 
of  different  parts  of  the  church  life  and  work,  the  congre- 
gation was  called  upon  to  give  thanks  that  they  were 
neither  Turks  nor  Hottentots,  Germans  nor  English,  nor 
of  any  other  nation  or  race,  but  plain  Americans,  and  all 
sang  with  great  vigour  "  My  Country  'tis  of  Thee." 
After  the  benediction,  the  eagerness  of  spirit,  the  unusual 
social  freedom,  as  well  as  the  words  of  appreciation  and 
of  assurance  of  personal  help  and  inspiration,  proved 
that  the  purpose  of  the  service  had  been  realized  to  at 
least  some  degree. 

To  criticise  this  service  is  easy.  That  is  the  reason  I 
chose  it  as  an  illustration.  There  was  not  enough  con- 
gregational singing.  Two  hymns  and  two  anthems  by 
the  choir  were  crowded  out  by  persons  who  took  ten 
minutes  each  to  make  the  suggested  three  minute  talks. 
But  in  spite  of  its  manifest  shortcomings,  the  service  was 
effective  and  illustrated  what  could  be  done  with  the 
most  untoward  materials. 

Then  there  is  the  miscellaneous  song  service  in  which 
there  need  be  no  controlling  theme  to  which  the  hymns 
and  anthems  and  other  music  must  be  subordinate.  It 
hardly  needs  to  be  emphasized  that  such  a  service  is  greatly 
inferior  to  a  song  sermon,  or  even  to  a  more  strictly  uni- 
fied song  service.  Yet  it  has  the  advantage  of  admitting 
a  great  many  more  miscellaneous  hymnological  and  mu- 
sical facts  of  more  or  less  general  interest.  That  its  prep- 
aration calls  for  little  thought  or  time  is  another  attractive 
feature  to  some  ministers.  Besides  it  harmonizes  better 
with  a  series  of  generally  aimless  and  unrelated  services 
and  sermons ! 

I  am  frank  to  say  that  these  miscellaneous  song  services 


348  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

do  not  appeal  to  me.  They  are  too  characterless,  too 
aimless.  Firing  blank  cartridges  may  be  fun  for  boys 
who  enjoy  mere  noise,  but  serious  men  ought  to  prefer 
ball  cartridges  with  which  to  hit  a  definite  mark. 

To  make  these  song  services  purely  educational  and 
cultural  is  a  serious  misuse  of  the  religious  opportunity 
the  church  service  affords.  To  sing  and  play  the  grand 
masterpieces  of  religious  music  is  a  good  work  well  worth 
doing,  but  it  is  not  a  work  for  church  services.  May  I 
reiterate — for  great  is  the  power  of  reiteration,  the  drop- 
ping water  that  wears  away  the  stone — that  the  standard 
is  not  one  of  artistic  excellence,  but  of  practical  efficiency? 
The  church  is  not  God's  agency  for  the  spread  of  beauty, 
but  for  the  development  of  personal  righteousness  and 
loyalty  to  Him. 

If  I  look  somewhat  askance  at  a  song  service,  which 
may  have  its  value  as  paving  the  way  for  the  song  ser- 
mon, and  as  a  happy  relief  from  the  sometimes  sleepy 
routine  of  regular  services,  you  can  imagine  what  I  think 
of  sacred  concerts  !  I  simply  cannot  away  with  them  ! 
The  very  name  is  suggestive  of  personal  vanity  and  dis- 
play. If  you  call  a  "  song  service  "  a  "  sacred  concert " 
there  is  something  lost.  The  idea  of  personal  pleasure 
is  substituted  for  the  idea  of  worship,  and  in  spite  of  the 
sacred  character  of  the  music,  which  may  impress  the  in- 
telligent and  susceptible  hearer  and  produce  quasi-religious 
emotions  which  really  have  little  moral  value,  the  whole 
attitude  is  one  of  selfish  pleasure,  not  of  humble  devotion. 
Richard  Storrs  Willis  recognized  the  difficulty :  "  It  is  a 
difficult  thing  to  be  musically  gratified  and  entertained 
and  to  be  worshipping  God  at  the  same  time." 

That  the  same  is  true  of  any  church  service  where  the 
music  is  rendered  by  professional,  irreligious  singers,  who 


THE  SONG  SERVICE  349 

have  never  risen  above  the  low  plane  of  the  concert  room, 
and  is  listened  to  by  the  congregation  in  the  same  spirit, 
does  not  excuse  the  sacred  concert,  for  such  a  service  also 
is  a  travesty  of  sacred  things,  over  which,  if  Marie  Corelli 
is  to  be  believed,  Satan  himself  is  wont  to  frown.  I  be- 
lieve in  the  song  sermon  and  even  in  the  song  service, 
and  feel  they  ought  to  be  used  very  much  oftener  than 
they  now  are,  even  in  the  most  musical  churches ;  but 
they  should  never,  either  unconsciously  or  consciously, 
degenerate  into  a  "  sacred  concert."  The  music  in  a  song 
service  and  a  sacred  concert  may  be  exactly  the  same, 
but  the  underlying  purpose  and  spirit  are  as  wide  apart 
as  the  antipodes.  While  a  few  choice  spirits  may  get 
good  out  of  a  sacred  concert,  because  they  bring  a  re- 
ligious spirit  to  its  hearing,  and  so  exalt  it  to  the  higher 
plane,  what  about  the  other  hearers  who  attend  "  for  the 
fun  of  the  thing  "  ?  Such  persons  are  like  the  reporter 
who  was  detailed  to  write  up  a  musical  service.  He 
looked  upon  the  religious  exercises  as  merely  incidental 
and  referred  to  them  as  follows :  "  During  the  recess  be- 
tween the  different  pieces  of  music  the  officiating  clergy- 
man read  the  morning  service." 


Ill 

CHURCH  SOLOS 

IN  going  around  among  the  churches  one  is  amazed  at 
the  "  stuff"  that  is  being  sung  as  solos  by  people 
who  are  otherwise  intelligent  and  sensible.  In  the 
first  place  the  pieces  are  selected  from  the  wrong  stand- 
point. The  glory  of  God,  or  the  help  of  the  hearers,  is 
not  even  thought  of;  if  it  rises  above  a  question  of  per- 
sonal pride  or  even  vanity,  it  is  simply  devotion  to  a 
musical  standard.  Which  piece  will  enable  them  to  make 
the  most  effective  display  of  their  voice  and  skill  ?  Or, 
which  piece  is  the  most  classical  in  style?  The  exhorta- 
tion of  Paul  to  the  Philippians,  that  "  nothing  be  done 
through  strife  or  vainglory  "  is  forgotten. 

How  inexpressibly  shallow,  how  sinfully  selfish  is  such 
a  view  of  the  privilege  of  singing  before  an  assembly  of 
worshipping  souls,  and  how  hollow  a  mockery  of  in- 
finitely holy  things  it  must  appear  to  Him  in  whose  hon- 
our it  falsely  purports  to  be.  Often  the  music  is  abso- 
lutely secular  and  irreligious  despite  its  classical  style. 
Oftener  still,  the  text  is  the  sheerest  balderdash  absolutely 
unfitted  for  purposes  of  worship. 

Think  of  a  baritone  appearing  before  an  ultra-Protestant 
congregation  bawling  an  "  Ave-Maria,"  trusting  to  his 
poor  articulation  (and  his  trust  is  not  entirely  in  vain)  to 
cover  up  his  Roman  Catholic  appeal  to  "  Holy  Mother/' 
apparently  unaware  that  he  might  as  well  be  singing  a 
song  to  Apollo,  one  of  the  Vedic  Hymns,  or  a  part  of 

35° 


any  other  pagan  liturgy.  His  plea,  that  the  music  is 
pretty,  only  convicts  him  of  an  utter  lack  of  apprehension 
of  the  true  uses  of  music  in  church  service.  How  many 
more  solos  are  set  to  sweet  sentimental  texts  that  are  in- 
nocent enough,  but  trivial  to  the  last  degree !  The 
words  ought  to  be  as  religious  as  the  hymns  the  congre- 
gation sings,  appealing  to  the  distinctly  devout  and  re- 
ligious feelings  and  impulses  of  the  worshipper.  The  solo 
has  no  reason  for  existence,  if  this  is  not  done. 

If  the  singer  has  put  away  all  thought  of  self  and  sings 
spontaneously  and  sincerely  a  message  that  will  comfort 
and  inspire,  a  solo  may  be  made  one  of  the  most 
religious  and  helpful  features  of  a  church  service.  To  do 
anything  else  is  to  waste  a  rare  opportunity  to  cheer  and 
lift  the  hearts  of  men,  and  is  to  degrade  to  a  petty  con- 
cert what  should  be  the  noblest  and  most  elevated  mo- 
ment in  the  life  of  the  people  who  are  assembled  to 
commune  with  the  Infinite  Creator,  their  Saviour  and 
Refuge.  Am  I  too  severe  when  I  say  that  the  savage 
beating  his  tom-tom  before  a  hideous  idol  is  more 
religious  than  are  many  of  our  solo  singers  ?  He  is  at 
least  sincere !  If  we  could  only  get  a  permanent  and 
profound  realization  of  God's  august  presence  in  His 
house  during  divine  service,  what  a  change  would  come 
over  the  matter  and  spirit  of  our  church  music. 

Solos  should  be  as  integral  a  part  of  the  church  service 
as  the  sermon.  Their  selection  should  be  as  purposeful 
as  the  selection  of  the  text  of  the  sermon.  For  this 
reason  the  pastor  should  cooperate  with  the  singer  in  the 
choice,  emphasizing  on  his  part  not  so  much  the  music, 
as  the  text  and  its  relation  to  his  plans  for  the  service. 
The  same  general  principles  guide  as  in  the  selection  of 
the  other  hymns,  but  there  may  well  be  more  latitude, 


352  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

first  because  there  is  less  material  at  hand  from  which  to 
select  and  what  is  available  is  unorganized  and  unsym- 
metrical,  and  second,  because  the  personality  and  limita- 
tions of  the  soloist,  his  skill,  his  style,  his  adaptability, 
are  factors  of  which  account  must  be  taken.  Even  the 
adaptability  and  skill  of  the  accompanist  has  an  impor- 
tant bearing. 

No  cheap,  secular,  fantastic  sentimentalities  ought  to 
pass  muster.  At  the  same  time  a  soloist  can  sing  re- 
ligious poems,  expressions  of  intimate  personal  desire  and 
experiences  rich  in  rhetorical  figure,  that  would  be  absurd 
on  the  lips  of  a  congregation.  There  are  so  many  fine 
solo  settings  of  hymns  accepted  as  standards,  that  a  wise 
and  worthy  selection  is  always  possible.  Among  the 
best  solos  now  written  are  many  to  Scripture  texts  which 
are  dignified  and  impressive  and  eminently  fitting  for  a 
church  service. 

The  musical  and  literary  culture  of  the  congregation, 
whether  more  or  less,  must  always  be  borne  in  mind. 
A  simple  Gospel  song  with  devout,  Scriptural  matter,  or  a 
sane,  normal  appeal  to  religious  emotions,  will  often  be 
infinitely  more  effective  than  an  aria  from  a  great 
oratorio. 

After  all  that  has  gone  before,  need  I  again  emphasize 
that  the  solo  must  be  selected  to  harmonize  with  the 
plan  of  the  service,  with  what  has  gone  before  and  with 
what  is  to  follow  ?  When  the  range  of  selection  is 
limited  for  the  lack  of  needed  materials  or  by  the  lack  of 
skill  or  by  the  insubordination  of  the  soloists,  and  the  solo 
is  only  remotely  related  to  the  general  key-note  of  the 
service,  the  pastor  should  make  all  the  more  earnest  and 
thoughtful  effort  to  bring  out  the  relation  that  vaguely 
exists,  or  to  create  one  if  it  does  not  exist,  by  a  graceful, 


CHURCH  SOLOS  353 

striking  introduction.  By  some  happy  turn  of  thought, 
by  an  effective  illustration,  the  most  unpromising  solo,  un- 
related and  foreign  to  the  spirit  and  purpose  of  the  service, 
may  sometimes  be  made  the  consummate  note  of  power. 

Singers  are  so  spoiled,  so  accustomed  to  sing  in  a  de- 
tached, unrelated  way  whatever  their  pride  or  fancy 
dictates,  that  they  may  at  first  be  restive  under  such 
supervision  and  introduction. 

But  steady,  undeviating  purpose,  softened  by  unfailing 
patience,  kindliness,  and  tact,  should  secure  the  loyalty 
and  cooperation  of  the  most  captious  and  irritable.  A 
little  experience  will  soon  convince  them  that  such  an 
incorporation  of  their  work  into  the  general  scheme  of 
the  service,  such  a  tuning  up  of  the  congregation  to  in- 
telligent responsiveness,  is  as  much  to  their  personal  in- 
terest as  to  that  of  the  service. 

There  are  prevalent  faults  in  church  solo  singers  that 
so  vitiate  their  work,  that  it  is  worth  the  minister's  while 
to  seek  to  correct  them.  One  is  the  evident  effort  at 
personal  display.  Another  allied  to  it  is  insincerity  and 
lack  of  personal  sympathy  with  the  message  conveyed 
by  the  solo.  A  third  is  slovenliness  of  enunciation,  the 
congregation  being  unable  to  distinguish  the  words,  so 
losing  the  whole  meaning  of  the  effort.  Still  another  is 
an  affected  emotionalism,  finding  expression  in  dramatic 
poses,  "  scooping  "  or  excessive  portamento,  appropriate 
only  in  impassioned  operatic  singing,  and  a  cheap,  vulgar 
tremolo  or  vibrato.  The  latter  is  particularly  prevalent 
in  church  singing,  having  been  borrowed  from  the  low 
vaudeville  and  light  operatic  singers.  This  mechanical 
insincerity  is  sorely  punished,  for  within  a  few  years,  the 
singer  loses  his  ear  for  true  pitch  and  his  voice  becomes 
a  wreck. 


354  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

Now  the  minister  cannot  attack  these  directly ;  he 
must  secure  a  higher  ideal  in  the  mind  and  heart  of  the 
singer,  having  him  conquer  the  egotism  that  is  the  direct 
cause  of  most  of  them,  and  filling  him  with  a  sense  of 
his  high  spiritual  opportunity  and  with  an  ambition  to 
utilize  it  to  the  largest  possible  extent. 


IV 

FUNERAL  MUSIC 

FUNERAL  music  is  getting  into  a  very  deep  rut. 
"  Asleep  in  Jesus  "  is  inevitable.  "  Lead  Thou 
me  on "  is  almost  equally  certain,  though  ap- 
propriate only  by  the  emphasis  placed  on  the  closing 
phrases.  Add  M  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee,"  M  Safe  in  the 
arms  of  Jesus,"  M  Rock  of  Ages,"  and  "  Jesus,  lover  of  my 
soul,"  and  the  music  of  nine  out  of  ten  funerals  is  outlined. 

Of  course,  there  are  reasons  for  this  limited  list. 
There  is  little  time  for  preparation ;  the  services  occur  at 
unusual  or  busy  hours ;  the  range  of  material  from 
which  to  select  is  limited  ;  the  friends  who  select  the 
hymns  have  no  wide  acquaintance  or  interest  in  hymns ; 
the  singers  are  volunteers,  who  have  little  opportunity  to 
practice  together. 

"  Whatever  the  difficulty,  there  is  always  a  way  out," 
is  a  favourite  motto  of  mine,  and  it  is  true  here.  If  the 
choir  cannot  sing  at  funerals,  some  definite  arrangement 
should  be  made  with  certain  persons  who  can  be  relied 
upon  to  supply  this  needed  tender  service.  These 
should  practice  regularly,  and  add  constantly  to  their 
repertoire  of  appropriate  numbers.  If  a  quartet  cannot 
be  secured,  why  not  use  a  sympathetic  soloist?  Some- 
times a  duet  will  be  even  more  effective. 

It  should  be  clearly  realized  that  a  Christian  funeral  is 
no  place  for  hopeless,  depressing  music.  While  it 
should  be  tender  and  restrained,  it  may  also  be  hopeful 
and  cheering.     Singers  are  often  so  impressed  with  the 

355 


356  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

solemnity  of  the  occasion  that  they  sing  so  softly  that 
their  tones  lose  all  musical  value.  Couple  with  it  an  ex- 
cessive tremolo,  so  often  affected  by  half-cultivated 
singers,  and  you  have  a  combination  revolting  to  the 
really  sincere  and  musical  soul.  When  an  aged  Christian 
dies,  his  work  well  done,  his  life's  battles  gloriously  won, 
and  goes  to  his  crowning  at  the  hands  of  his  blessed 
Master,  what  occasion  is  there  for  lugubrious  strains? 
Do  we  not  at  our  funerals  too  often  practically  deny  the 
very  doctrine  that  ought  to  be  our  chief  comfort  at  such 
a  time  ?  What  little  hope  we  have  in  Christ  seems  to  be 
in  this  life  only,  and  when  death  comes  to  our  homes 
we  are  of  all  men  most  miserable. 

The  minister  ought  to  have  an  active  voice  in  the  selec- 
tion of  funeral  music.  To  leave  it  to  the  whim  and 
ignorance  of  the  friends  of  the  departed  often  leads  to 
rank  absurdity.  At  the  very  best,  their  limited  knowl- 
edge of  appropriate  songs  confines  their  selection  to  the 
half  dozen  already  named,  which  impress  them  as  the 
conventionally  proper  thing.  Let  the  minister  assume 
that  he  is  to  select  his  own  hymns.  Let  him  look  as 
much  surprised  when  the  friends  dictate  what  hymns 
shall  be  sung,  as  he  would  if  they  gave  instructions 
regarding  music  in  the  regular  service.  He  need  not  re- 
fuse, he  need  not  be  discourteous  or  unsympathetic,  but 
his  surprised  look  will  discourage  a  repetition  of  the 
thoughtlessness.  Then  when  he  has  won  the  victory 
over  this  tyranny  of  grief  that  takes  a  solemn  pleasure 
in  contemplating  itself,  let  him  have  his  quartet  or  soloist 
sing  "  Jerusalem,  the  Golden,"  "  There  is  a  land  of  pure 
delight,"  "  I  will  sing  you  a  song  of  that  beautiful  land," 
"  Bringing  in  the  Sheaves,"  "  Give  me  the  wings  of  faith 
to  rise/'  "  Blest  be  the  tie  that  binds,"  the  first  two  verses 


FUNERAL  MUSIC  357 

of  Bickersteth's  "  Till  He  Come,"  "  How  firm  a  founda- 
tion," "  Jesus,  Saviour,  pilot  me," — the  range  of  selection 
of  really  appropriate  hymns  is  too  large  that  I  should  ex- 
haust it — and  make  the  service  no  less  sympathetic,  but 
much  more  Christian  and  inspiring. 

Moreover,  why  should  not  the  preacher,  incidentally  in 
a  sermon,  or  directly  in  an  address  upon  the  ideal  Chris- 
tian funeral,  brush  away  these  pagan  cobwebs  that  still 
hang  about  the  minds  of  professed  believers  in  Christ  and 
His  resurrection  ?  Why  should  these  false  conceptions 
of  funereal  "  good  form "  continue  to  degrade  our 
memorial  services  into  occasions  of  heathen  wailing  in 
utter  denial  of  the  cardinal  doctrines  of  Christianity  ? 

The  needed  instruction  cannot  be  given  at  the  time  of 
the  funeral.  To  criticise  plans,  to  argue  against  certain 
details,  to  oppose  even  the  foolish  wishes  of  the  afflicted, 
would  be  consummate  tactlessness,  betraying  utter  heart- 
lessness.  Instruction  upon  the  important  and  delicate 
subject  must  be  given  apart  from  any  funeral  service,  and 
must  avoid  sharp  and  severe  criticism  lest  tender  mem- 
ories of  scenes  of  parting  from  loved  ones  that  have  gone 
before  be  rudely  disturbed,  letting  positive  instructions 
how  things  ought  to  be  done  take  the  place  of  condemna- 
tion of  things  that  have  been  done. 

If  the  minister  himself  will  make  less  of  the  grass  that 
withereth,  and  the  flower  that  fadeth  away,  and  more 
of  the  hope  that  is  laid  up  for  us  in  heaven,  where 
this  corruptible  shall  have  put  on  incorruption,  and  of 
the  glory  which  shall  be  revealed  in  us  incomparably  be- 
yond the  sufferings  of  the  present  time,  the  people  will 
be  readier  to  sing  hymns  of  victory  and  triumphant  faith 
when  their  Christian  friends  are  promoted  to  the  taber- 
nacle not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens. 


EVANGELISTIC  MUSIC 

AN  evangelistic  campaign  is  not  usually  organized 
for  mere  instruction.  There  may  be  a  striking 
review  of  the  instruction  already  given  in  the 
home,  in  the  Sunday-school,  in  the  regular  service  and 
by  the  printed  page,  but  that  review  is  not  with  a  view  of 
impressing  the  memory  so  much  as  to  reach  the  heart, 
the  conscience,  and  the  will.  Primarily  the  whole  pur- 
pose is  to  compel  a  definite  decision  on  the  part  of  persons 
who  know  their  duty,  but  have  not  done  it. 

To  reach  a  decision  three  things  are  necessary :  to  ap- 
peal to  the  judgment  with  living,  concrete  truth ;  to  stir 
the  emotions  that  normally  follow  the  clear  apprehension 
of  such  truth  and  normally  precede  the  action  of  the 
will ;  to  create  a  definite,  unescapable  occasion  and  op- 
portunity to  make  a  decision. 

The  wills  of  ninety-nine  men  are  moved  by  mere  emo- 
tion where  one  man  is  moved  by  an  abstract  thought. 
Sacred  music  expressing  and  creating  religious  emotion 
is  therefore  an  immense  force  in  evangelistic  work.  The 
sincere  feeling  of  a  hundred  devout  souls  is  concentrated 
by  a  properly  rendered  Gospel  song,  and  creates  an  atmos- 
phere of  religious  interest  and  emotion  that  surrounds 
and  impresses  and  affects  in  an  intangible  but  invincible 
way  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  unsaved  persons  present, 
and  rouses  feelings  never  experienced  before,  giving  vital 
force  to  facts  and  ideas  that  never  seemed  real  until  now. 

358 


EVANGELISTIC  MUSIC  359 

On  the  merely  human  side  there  is  a  psychic  force 
here,  unmoral  in  itself,  it  is  true,  but,  like  any  other 
capacity  of  our  nature,  available  for  the  highest  moral 
and  spiritual  uses.  If  one  will  study  God's  methods  of 
winning  the  unsaved,  as  exemplified  in  definite  cases  hap- 
pening before  our  eyes,  we  shall  find  Him  using  the  most 
trivial  occurrences,  the  most  unpromising  lines  of  in- 
fluence. It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  He  takes  the 
exercise  of  song,  with  the  attendant  psychic  force  it 
generates,  and,  filling  it  with  His  spirit  and  using  it  for  His 
purposes  of  salvation,  makes  it  a  mighty  engine  of 
power  to  lift  men  out  of  sin.  When  God  takes  the  shal- 
lowest ditty  with  no  body  of  thought  in  its  text  and  no 
dignity  or  strength  in  its  music  and  cleanses  it  by  His 
spirit  for  effective  use,  no  modern  Peter  may  call  it  com- 
mon or  unclean.  God  has  laid  His  seal  of  acceptance 
upon  the  singing  of  the  Gospel  of  salvation  just  as  surely 
as  He  has  upon  its  preaching. 

Indeed,  so  valuable  is  the  service  of  song  in  its  varied 
forms  and  applications  that  if  properly  managed  it  may 
produce  immense  results  without  any  regular  preaching 
at  all.  I  should  expect  the  blessing  of  God  on  a  series 
of  song  sermons,  properly  planned  and  conducted,  as  cer- 
tainly as  upon  equally  spiritual  discourses.  A  singing 
evangelist,  who  is  fertile  in  spiritual  comment  as  well  as 
a  good  leader  of  song,  may  be  the  very  best  helper  a 
regular  pastor  can  secure.  If  he  is  able,  devout,  discreet, 
the  pastor  can  afford  to  shorten  his  own  sermonic  contri- 
butions to  the  work  and  give  the  singer  the  larger  place 
in  the  campaign. 

Ninety-nine  out  of  every  hundred  church  hymnals 
have  in  view  only  the  solemn  convocation  of  the  saints 
on  Sunday  morning.     Hence  it  is  necessary,  when  getting 


360  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUQIC 

down  to  practical,  effective,  personal  work,  to  secure  a 
small  collection  of  songs  and  hymns  written  and  gathered 
expressly  for  this  purpose.  These  books  can  be  found 
by  various  authors  and  in  many  styles  and  of  diverse 
standards.  Not  only  the  congregation  by  which  the 
work  is  being  done,  but  the  character  of  the  unsaved 
whom  it  is  desired  to  influence,  must  be  taken  into  ac- 
count. To  use  a  cheap,  light  class  of  music  in  a  con- 
servative, well  educated  community  is  as  unwise  as  to 
use  a  heavy  sedate  style  in  a  rude,  unlettered  one. 

Such  a  book  need  not  contain  over  a  hundred  selec- 
tions. Really,  a  score  of  well  selected  revival  numbers 
would  be  sufficient  under  ordinary  circumstances,  as  a  few 
favourites  will  naturally  be  sung  over  and  over,  while  the 
less  attractive  songs  will  have  less  power  to  impress  and 
incite  less  general  participation. 

An  evangelistic  song-book  should  contain  three  classes 
of  songs  :  the  old  standard  hymns,  the  current  popular 
Gospel  songs,  and  an  assortment  of  attractive  new  pieces. 
A  new  song  that  is  really  attractive  is  a  wonderful  force 
in  a  meeting,  a  force  even  greater  than  that  of  a  better 
song  already  well  used.  It  arrests  attention  ;  the  people 
will  sing  a  new  song  at  home,  on  the  streets,  about  their 
work,  thus  linking  their  thoughts  abidingly  with  the 
meeting  and  advertising  it  and  creating  interest  in  it. 
"  Tell  Mother  I'll  be  There,"  "  It's  Just  Like  Him,"  and 
"  Oh,  That  Will  be  Glory,"  have  done  more  to  character- 
ize Dr.  Torrey's  evangelistic  tour  about  the  world,  and 
to  give  it  notoriety,  than  any  other  human  factor. 

In  analyzing  the  character  of  books  considered  for  this 
use,  care  should  be  taken  to  exclude  mere  haphazard 
collections  of  the  editor's  favourites,  having  no  complete- 
ness of  provision  for  all  the  varied  exigencies  of  a  meet- 


EVANGELISTIC  MUSIC  361 

ing,  proportionate  to  the  importance  of  the  several  lines 
of  thought  or  methods  of  work  to  be  pursued.  For  the 
early  meetings  of  the  series,  there  should  be  songs  of 
consecration  and  inspiration  for  the  Christian  workers. 
These  may  include  a  large  variety  of  sentiments.  There 
should  be  hymns  of  prayer,  hymns  to  and  concerning 
the  Holy  Spirit,  hymns  of  faith,  courage  and  love.  Then 
there  should  be  songs  of  warning,  of  invitation,  of  ex- 
hortation to  the  unsaved,  the  more  striking  and  impress- 
ive the  better.  These  may  be  songs  for  general  use  or 
for  solos,  duets,  or  quartets.  They  must  be  songs  that 
will  "  find  "  the  people  to  be  reached,  appealing  to  their 
tender  sympathies,  their  love  of  mother,  father,  wife,  or 
child,  their  fear  of  death  and  the  hereafter.  Here  is  no 
place  for  dainty  taste  or  personal  fastidiousness,  whether 
musical  or  literary.  Let  me  reiterate  and  reemphasize, — 
it  is  the  point  of  view  of  the  unsaved,  and  the  point  of 
touch  with  those  who  are  to  be  reached  that  will  de- 
termine the  standard  to  be  observed,  not  that  of  the 
Christian  worker.  After  all,  intellectual  and  artistic 
pride  are  only  forms  of  worldly  pride,  and  that  has  been 
always  recognized  as  a  foe  to  spirituality. 

What  has  already  been  said,  regarding  the  methods  to 
be  used  in  congregational  and  solo  singing  in  general, 
applies  to  evangelistic  singing  in  an  intensified  degree. 
A  larger  liberty,  a  greater  freedom  from  prescribed  pro- 
gram, is  not  only  permissible,  but  peremptorily  neces- 
sary. Listening  to  some  evangelistic  singers  with  their 
almost  scolding  demands  for  every  one  to  sing,  their 
trifling  witticisms,  their  exaggerated  and  fulsome  praise 
of  the  singing  of  the  people,  one  is  apt  to  wonder  how 
the  work  can  prosper :  but  it  does  prosper,  and  in  part 
because  of  the  very  liberties  the  leader  takes  with  the 


362  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

people.  The  starch  of  formality  is  rubbed  out  of  the 
congregation  and  the  individuals  in  it  feel  free  to  partic- 
ipate, free  to  move  about,  free  to  rise  for  prayers,  free 
to  come  forward  to  receive  instruction  and  counsel. 

I  confess  the  sheer  secularity  of  some  of  the  leaders 
of  Gospel  song,  who  seem  to  be  conducting  an  old-fash- 
ioned singing-school  instead  of  a  religious  service,  repels 
me.  If  they  would  add  to  their  strong  leadership  an 
element  of  spirituality,  and  secure  general  participation, 
not  by  railing  and  scolding,  but  by  creating  spiritual  in- 
terest, they  would  certainly  be  more  efficient  and  inspir- 
ing. The  song  service  in  an  evangelistic  meeting  should 
be  steeped  in  spiritual  fervour,  tenderness  and  sympathy. 

Evangelistic  singing,  therefore,  must  be  emotional 
singing.  Sedate,  heavy  music  grieves  the  revival  spirit. 
Let  me  imitate  Isaak  Walton's  famous  remark  and  say 
that  doubtless  God  could  give  the  showers  of  blessing 
despite  slow,  spiritless  singing,  but  also  doubtless  God 
rarely  does.  But  where  there  is  objection  to  spirited 
popular  singing,  there  is  usually  also  objection  to  evangel- 
istic methods  in  general,  and  for  the  same  reason — that 
it  is  distasteful  and  uncongenial  to  minds  governed  by  reg- 
ularity, decent  order  and  invariable  convention.  The 
man  who  likes  trimmed  boxwood  hedges  in  a  stately 
formal  garden  is  by  the  law  of  his  nature  bound  to  object 
alike  to  popular  singing  and  popular  revival  methods. 
They  are  "  bad  form  "  and  that  is  quite  enough  for  him. 
One  might  as  well  object  to  one's  skeleton  as  to  criticise 
such  persons.  They  give  character,  rigidity,  and  form 
to  the  life  of  the  church  and  of  the  community.  But  the 
skeleton  is  not  the  source  of  the  active,  aggressive,  con- 
quering life  of  the  body ! 


VI 

MUSIC  IN  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL 

WHILE  the  minister  has  no  direct  authority 
over  the  music  in  the  Sunday-school,  he  may 
have  a  large  influence  upon  its  kind  and 
manner.  Unable  to  entirely  escape  responsibility,  he 
ought  to  have  a  definite  conception  of  what  music  ought 
to  be  used  and  how  it  is  most  likely  to  be  made  effective 
in  his  particular  school.  Let  us  analyze  the  situation 
and  seek  the  underlying  facts  that  should  determine  his 
judgment. 

The  Sunday-school  is  a  school,  not  a  devotional  serv- 
ice. Worship  is  incidental,  therefore,  not  its  character- 
istic feature.  Hymns  of  worship,  adoration,  praise,  are 
not  a  leading  element  in  its  song  service.  The  didactic, 
hortatory  attitude  governs  throughout,  and  will  naturally 
affect  the  choice  of  the  hymns  to  be  used.  Purely  de- 
votional songs  may  be  freely  used,  but  it  should  be  clearly 
recognized  as  educational,  the  purpose  being  to  store  the 
minds  of  the  children  with  the  great  hymns  of  the  church 
for  the  enrichment  of  their  future  religious  experience. 

The  hymns  used  must  not  only  be  largely  didactic,  but 
they  must  be  within  the  comprehension  and  the  plane  of 
interest  of  young  people  and  children.  A  great  hymn 
may  mean  less  to  a  child  than  a  shallow  one,  because  the 
chief  meaning  may  lie  below  the  line  of  its  mental  and 
spiritual  horizon.  Paul,  when  he  supplied  babes  with 
milk  instead  of  strong  meat,  was  a  better  spiritual  nurse 

363 


364  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

than  many  of  our  modern  pastors  who  endeavour  to  deal 
out  the  same  ration  of  condensed  food  to  all  alike.  For 
a  child  of  ten,  "  Jesus  loves  me,  this  I  know  "  has  more 
value  than  "  Love  divine,  all  loves  excelling,"  magnifi- 
cent as  the  latter  hymn  is  for  the  inspiration  of  adult 
Christians.  Simple  hymns  for  the  little  ones,  tangible, 
concrete,  practical  hymns  for  the  older  children  and 
young  people,  and  a  sufficient  portion  of  stronger  hymns 
for  the  adult  portion  of  the  school,  will  form  a  varied  diet 
in  which  all  will  find  nourishment  and  strength.  As  the 
needs  of  the  older  persons  in  the  school  are  largely  met 
in  the  services  of  the  church,  a  Sunday-school  hymnal 
must  contain  chiefly  materials  adapted  to  the  tastes,  and 
to  the  stage  of  mental,  artistic,  and  spiritual  development 
of  the  younger  members  of  the  school. 

Furthermore,  hymns  for  the  use  of  children  and  young 
people  must  have  a  certain  spontaneity,  vivacity,  and 
freedom  of  style  not  found  in  the  hymns  of  the  church. 
Their  rhythms  must  be  more  varied  and  lively.  Their 
phraseology  must  not  only  be  more  simple  in  vocabulary 
and  less  stilted  in  style,  but  more  catchy  in  expression 
and  more  rememberable.  The  meaning  must  lie  on  the 
surface,  evident  and  plain,  not  delicately  hidden  away  in 
the  folds  of  phraseology  characterized  by  picturesqueness 
or  preciosity. 

Fortunately,  the  commonplaces  of  life  are  still  fresh 
and  vital  to  the  children,  and,  still  more  fortunately,  it  is 
these  very  commonplaces  that  the  children  must  acquire, 
if  they  would  attain  clearness  of  vision  and  build  up 
strength  of  character.  Let  us,  therefore,  put  away  the 
egotism  of  judging  everything  by  our  own  pleasure  in  it, 
and  be  content  that  our  children  sing  many  hymns  that 
do  not  appeal  to  our  own  more  sophisticated  taste. 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL  365 

Still  keeping  in  mind  that  the  persons  whom  the  Sun- 
day-school is  chiefly  to  help  are  young  and  active,  we 
inevitably  reach  the  conclusion  that  the  music  to  be  used 
must  be  bright  and  lively,  full  of  striking  rhythms  and 
creating  spirit  and  enthusiasm.  Pronounced  march 
rhythms  are  entirely  in  order,  as  they  are  spontaneous 
among  the  young.  Dance  and  waltz  rhythms  are  more 
complicated  and  do  not  so  much  appeal  to  children. 
That  they  are  also  less  dignified  and  more  sensuous  gives 
sufficient  ground  for  deprecating  their  frequent  use.  At 
the  same  time,  all  songs  in  three-four  time  with  a  bright 
movement  are  not  necessarily  objectionable. 

In  their  devotion  to  artistic  and  literary  standards  some 
ministers  conscientiously  urge  the  introduction  of  Sun- 
day-school hymnals  filled  with  heavy  hymns  set  to 
heavier  music.  Here  and  there  a  school  with  unusual 
musical  resources,  with  an  unusually  patient,  persistent 
and  efficient  leader,  or  with  a  large  percentage  of  chil- 
dren of  foreign  parents  accustomed  to  slow,  heavy  re- 
ligious music,  can  make  a  fairly  successful  use  of  such  a 
book.  But  the  result  in  the  average  school  is  poor,  list- 
less singing  and  general  apathy  in  the  school's  whole  ac- 
tivity. A  dull,  lifeless  school  is  apt  to  select  such  a  book 
because  it  suits  its  sluggish  temper,  and  the  book  in  turn 
strengthens  the  school's  phlegmatic  tendency. 

But  occasionally  some  ambitious  superintendent  or 
pastor,  who  is  determined  to  have  what  some  high  theo- 
retical authority  urges  as  the  best,  introduces  such  a 
heavy  hymnal  into  a  vigorous  school  and  it  almost  in- 
variably proves  a  detriment  and  serious  handicap  to  its 
work.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  use  a  song-book  below 
the  level  of  the  average  culture  of  the  scholars  in  the  Sun- 
day-school, but  it  is   a  more  common  mistake  to  use  a 


366  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

dull,  heavy  book,  because  it  is  supposed  to  represent  a 
higher  literary  and  musical  standard. 

The  school  should  have  a  regular  leader  for  its  music. 
That  leader  may  be  the  superintendent,  if  he  is  musically 
competent.  This  arrangement  has  many  great  advan- 
tages in  its  favour :  there  is  more  unity  of  purpose ;  the 
superintendent  is  already  in  the  saddle  and  is  free  to  use 
many  expedients  to  add  interest,  and  to  take  extra  time 
occasionally  for  practice,  or  for  exploiting  a  song,  that  a 
minor  official  would  not  feel  warranted  in  doing.  Of 
course,  the  superintendent  who  is  really  capable  is  the 
exception,  not  the  rule. 

Whoever  the  leader  is,  official  or  unofficial,  he  ought 
to  be  master  of  the  situation.  This  is  even  more  true  in 
a  Sunday-school  than  in  a  miscellaneous  congregation. 
It  takes  pronounced,  live  leadership  to  hold  the  mercurial 
attention  of  the  children.  Moreover,  children,  even  more 
than  grown  people,  enjoy  being  in  the  grip  of  a  master- 
ful will.  They  will  bear  criticism,  scolding,  even  abuse, 
but  they  will  not  bear  dull  helplessness  or  flabbiness  of 
character. 

The  more  surprises  a  chorister  can  spring  on  his 
school,  the  more  unusual  and  unexpected  methods  he 
can  use  to  make  his  share  of  the  service  fresh  and  un- 
hackneyed, the  greater  will  be  the  interest  aroused,  and, 
therefore,  the  more  general  will  be  the  participation  of 
the  school.  Some  phases  of  Sunday-school  work  will 
bear  a  certain  amount  of  routine  without  suffering,  but 
its  music  never ! 

Owing  to  the  markedly  rhythmical  character  of  Sun- 
day-school music,  the  piano  is  a  better  instrument  for  ac- 
companiment than  the  organ.  A  combination  of  the 
two  will  be  found  quite  effective.     The  difficulty  in  that 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL  367 

case  is  to  keep  the  piano  in  tune  with  the  organ,  the 
variations  of  temperature  during  the  winter  making  a 
certain  variation  of  pitch  in  the  former  instrument  almost 
inevitable. 

If  orchestral  instruments  can  be  secured  in  addition 
to  the  piano,  they  will  add  richness  and  colour  to  the 
general  effect.  Stringed  instruments  and  wood  wind 
instruments,  such  as  flutes,  clarinets,  and  oboes,  are  always 
desirable  in  any  reasonable  number.  The  same  is  not 
true  of  the  brass  wind  instruments,  which  unfortunately 
are  more  common.  A  school  or  congregation  must  be 
exceedingly  large  to  call  for  more  than  one  cornet.  In 
a  recent  meeting  of  some  two  thousand  men  eight  cornets 
scattered  throughout  the  house  were  effective  when  every 
one  sang,  but  when  less  familiar  songs  were  sung  the 
effect  was  strident  and  overpowering.  If  this  was  true  in 
a  meeting  of  strong  men,  how  much  more  would  it  be 
true  in  a  school  four-fifths  of  which  is  made  up  of  women 
and  children. 

In  your  zeal  to  build  up  your  music  do  not  make  the 
quite  common  mistake  of  drowning  out  the  singing  of 
the  school  by  excessive  instrumental  support.  Where  a 
competent  precentor  is  leading,  it  may  be  well  to  provide 
a  few  more  violins  and  clarinets,  or  flutes,  and,  if  really 
needed,  an  extra  cornet.  In  general,  avoid  making  the 
instruments  obtrusive  and  prominent.  It  is  the  human 
voice  that  creates  the  desired  unity  of  spirit  and  gener- 
ates enthusiasm. 


VII 
THE  CHURCH  ORGAN 

ONE  musical  burden  after  the  other  has  been  laid 
upon  the  minister's  back :  is  there  danger  of 
the  proverbial  straw,  if  I  emphasize  his  respon- 
sibility for  the  work  of  the  organist?  Yet  that  often 
exasperating  potentate  is  too  essential  a  part  of  public 
service  to  be  neglected.  If  he  is  the  mere  accompanist 
of  the  vocal  music,  his  importance  is  not  so  great,  as  he 
becomes  simply  a  part  of  the  general  complex  we  call 
the  choir,  and  is  under  the  immediate  direction  of  the 
choir  director.  When  he  plays  preludes,  offertories,  and 
even  interludes,  he  is  no  longer  a  negligible  quantity. 

In  his  prelude  he  becomes  the  temporary  chairman 
whose  duty  it  is  to  announce  the  purpose  of  the  meeting. 
Is  it  to  bring  tender  worship  to  a  loving  God  and  com- 
fort to  His  buffeted  and  harassed  children,  the  soft  strains 
of  the  opening  voluntary  will  quiet  the  minds  and — may 
I  say  it? — the  nerves  of  the  mob  of  strenuous  people 
who  have  gathered.  Has  the  minister  a  call  to  the  rev- 
erent contemplation  of  some  sublime  aspect  of  the  divine 
nature,  the  majestic  pealing  of  the  organ  will  weld  the 
unorganized  multitude  into  one  body  full  of  solemn 
thought.  Is  there  some  great  marshalling  of  forces  for 
battle  against  some  specific  evil,  the  organist  should  pull 
out  his  trumpet  stop  and  call  to  arms.  No,  this  is  not 
impracticable  theorizing.     The  bands  on  the  streets  have 

368 


THE  CHURCH  ORGAN  369 

more  sense  of  fitness  and  tact  in  adapting  their  music  to 
the  occasion  than  nine-tenths  of  our  organists. 

Thibaut,  whose  "  Purity  in  Music "  was  highly  com- 
mended by  Robert  Schumann,  speaking  of  the  effect  of 
a  good  deal  of  organ  playing,  remarks,  "  The  prelude 
unfits  him  (i.  c,  the  hearer)  for  the  chorale,  and  the  intri- 
cate interlude  goes  a  great  way  to  distract  his  attention, 
and  the  sole  aim  of  the  concluding  voluntary  seems  to  be 
to  obliterate  the  sermon  and  everything  else." 

The  state  of  war,  that  often  exists  between  an  arbitrary, 
tactless  parson  and  his  self-sufficient,  unteachable  organist, 
is  amusingly  illustrated  in  Thibaut's  volume  quoted  above. 
Thibaut  himself  says,  "  Really,  it  is  above  comprehension 
how  the  clergy  have  quietly  borne  the  delinquencies  of 
organists,"  to  which  his  translator  replies  in  a  note,  "  It 
is  to  us  quite  incomprehensible  how  educated  musicians 
have  so  meekly  put  up  with  the  insolence  of  unmusical 
and  bigoted  clergymen."  Really,  both  have  my  sym- 
pathy, in  spite  of  the  fact  that  both  are  at  fault.  The 
clergyman  is  too  domineering  and  too  dogmatic  regard- 
ing details,  the  organist  too  self-important  over  his  tech- 
nical skill,  and  too  narrow  in  his  views  and  sympathies,  to 
comprehend  the  subordination  of  his  share  of  the  service 
to  the  more  important  general  purpose  in  view.  It  is 
the  preacher's  task,  as  presumably  the  broader  and  more 
sympathetic  man,  to  prevent  such  an  ecclesiastical  war 
by  establishing  the  sympathetic  cooperation  through 
which  alone  the  right  results  can  be  obtained. 

If  the  minister  will  calm  a  noisy  congregation  and 
announce  the  opening  voluntary  as  a  part  of  the  service, 
he  will  accomplish  several  important  results :  encourage 
the  organist  and  give  him  a  higher  sense  of  the  meaning 
of  his  work ;  impress  the  congregation  with  the  fact  that 


370  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

the  instrumental  prelude  is  an  integral  part  of  the  service, 
and  secure  the  attention  of  the  hearer  to  what  ought  to 
have  a  valuable  preparatory  and  solemnizing  effect  upon 
his  mind  and  heart. 

If  the  opening  service  has  been  carefully  prepared  in 
order  to  produce  an  attitude  worshipful  towards  God  and 
responsive  to  the  preacher's  message,  is  it  wise  to  allow 
the  organist  five  minutes  in  which  to  play  "  any  old 
thing"  as  an  offertory  just  before  the  sermon?  The 
minister  should  not  dictate  the  particular  voluntary  to  be 
played,  but  he  should  notify  the  organist  each  week  just 
what  type  of  composition  he  should  like  to  have  played 
just  before  his  sermon.  The  organist  need  have  no  sense 
of  meddling,  if  it  is  done  in  a  kindly,  appreciative,  tactful 
way.  He  ought  to  be  made  to  feel  that  such  a  super- 
vision is  a  recognition  of  the  value  of  his  work. 

Many  a  service  is  marred  by  the  organist's  playing  of 
the  hymn  tunes.  Instead  of  a  mere  fragment  of  the  tune 
ending  in  a  perfect  or  imperfect  cadence,  ample  to  establish 
the  tonality  and  movement  and  to  suggest  the  tune  that  is 
to  be  sung,  valuable  time  is  wasted  in  playing  over  the 
whole  tune.  Often  it  is  played  so  rapidly  as  to  mislead 
the  congregation  regarding  the  time  in  which  it  is  to  be 
sung,  or  with  such  elaborate  and  recondite  harmonies  as 
to  leave  no  impression  on  the  minds  of  the  congregation 
as  to  the  tonality.  If  the  whole  tune  is  played,  the  only 
excuse  for  the  waste  of  time  is  that  it  shall  serve  as  a 
model  to  remind  the  congregation  how  it  is  to  be  sung. 
The  registration  and  tempo  will  indicate  the  spirit  in 
which  the  congregation  is  to  sing  the  hymn. 

A  very  unmusical  and  offensive  habit  of  announcing 
the  beginning  of  a  stanza  has  become  quite  the  conven- 
tionally proper  thing.     I  refer  to  the  sounding  of  the  first 


THE  CHURCH  ORGAN  371 

note  of  the  melody.  It  has  always  annoyed  me,  although 
I  never  had  analyzed  the  impression  clearly  enough  to 
bring  the  reason  for  my  annoyance  definitely  before  my 
mind.  I  was  glad,  therefore,  to  find  Dudley  Buck  rep- 
robating the  practice  in  his  valuable  book,  "  Choir  Ac- 
companiment," and  giving  a  philosophical  basis  for  his 
criticism :  "  Instead  of  the  pedal  entering  upon  the  sec- 
ond half  of  the  second  measure  (in  his  illustration  really 
the  second  half  of  the  measure  preceding  the  actual  be- 
ginning of  the  tune)  the  Great  Organ  enters  abruptly 
upon  the  second  half  of  the  measure  with  the  upper  note 
of  the  harmony  alone.  This  is  very  objectionable  except 
in  the  rarest  cases,  but  is  far  too  frequently  heard  in  our 
churches.  It  is  illogical,  in  that  the  foundation  should 
come  first  and  not  the  superstructure.  The  chord  should 
be  built  up  from  its  fundamental  tone  to  be  agreeable  to 
the  ear." 

There  is  probably  no  more  general  fault  among  organ- 
ists than  the  lack  of  adaptation  of  the  registration  to  the 
character  of  the  tune,  to  the  size  of  the  house,  and  to  the 
number  of  worshippers  participating  in  the  congrega- 
tional song.  To  use  the  full  organ  invariably  is  the  cus- 
tom of  most  organists.  That  only  the  quartet  choir,  sup- 
plemented by  a  few  timid  voices  in  the  congregation,  are 
singing  seems  to  make  no  difference,  the  organ  bellows 
on !  To  hear  the  full  organ  play  over  a  plain  hymn  tune 
in  a  distressingly  loud  way  is  hardly  a  devotional  exer- 
cise, and  consciously  or  unconsciously  sensitive  people 
will  be  disturbed  and  distracted  in  their  devotions.  The 
difficulty  is  that  the  organist  is  too  close  to  his  instrument 
to  get  its  full  power.  That  sounds  like  a  paradox,  but  is 
none  the  less  literally  true. 

The  organist  is  therefore  peculiarly  in  need  of  sugges- 


372  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

tions  from  others  as  to  his  registration.  Not  only  the 
choir  director,  but  the  minister,  ought  to  be  helpful  in  this 
particular.  On  this  point  Dr.  Curvven  in  his  "  Studies  in 
Worship  Music "  makes  a  valuable  suggestion :  "  It  is 
most  important  that  every  organist  should  take  an  op- 
portunity of  hearing  himself  as  others  hear  him.  Very 
few  do  this  and  very  few  have  any  idea  how  their  play- 
ing sounds  in  the  body  of  the  church,  for  an  organist 
cannot  judge  of  the  effect  of  his  own  instrument  while  he 
is  playing.  The  best  way  of  proving  one's  playing  is  to 
get  a  competent  friend  to  play  a  service,  write  down  the 
stops  he  is  to  use  in  the  several  verses  of  one  or  two 
hymns  and  station  one's  self  in  the  middle  of  the  church." 

Many  organists  are  unduly  fond  of  interludes.  They 
play  a  long  one  after  each  verse  and  so  waste  very  val- 
uable time.  Usually  a  single  interlude  in  a  hymn  of  four 
or  five  verses  is  ample.  The  habit  of  always  playing  an 
interlude  before  the  last  verse  is  absurdly  mechanical. 
Too  much  depends  on  the  development  of  the  thought 
of  the  hymn.  To  divide  the  last  two  intimately  associated 
verses  of  the  hymn,  "  Alas,  and  did  my  Saviour  bleed," 
with  a  long  interlude  is  sheer  wickedness.  Interludes  are 
in  place  only  where  there  is  a  definite  cleavage  in  the  line 
of  thought.  If  there  is  a  marked  change  in  the  emotional 
character  of  the  verses,  an  interlude  will  serve  admirably 
to  make  the  necessary  transition. 

An  interlude  is  valuable  only  as  it  is  made  valuable  by 
thoughtfulness  and  adaptation  to  the  purpose  for  which 
the  hymn  is  sung.  To  treat  it  only  as  a  breathing  place 
for  the  choir  and  congregation,  and  to  make  it  a  vague 
groping  after  ideas  that  do  not  materialize  into  a  definite 
contribution  to  the  song  service,  is  all  the  more  unfor- 
tunate that  it  is  so  common.     The  best  the  minister  can 


THE  CHURCH  ORGAN  373 

do  in  such  a  case  is  to  consult  with  the  organist  regarding 
the  proper  place  for  an  interlude,  and  reduce  his  thought- 
less interruption  to  the  smallest  space  of  time  possible. 

Whether  a  congregation  ought  to  have  a  pipe  organ 
or  not,  will  very  largely  depend  upon  its  musical  as  well 
as  its  financial  resources.  In  many  a  church  there  is  sud- 
denly developed  an  ambition  for  a  pipe  organ.  The  peo- 
ple hardly  know  why  they  want  it.  Some  think  it  is 
more  up  to  date.  Others  think  its  absence  an  unanswer- 
able proof  of  the  inferiority  of  their  church.  Some  want 
it  because  it  is  now  the  mode  among  aristocratic  churches, 
and  they  would  like  to  be  numbered  among  them.  A 
few  want  a  pipe  organ  because  they  realize  its  artistic  and 
religious  possibilities. 

The  fact  is  that  a  pipe  organ  is  not  an  unmixed  good. 
In  some  churches  it  is  rather  an  unmixed  evil.  Given  a 
small  congregation  that  is  not  hearty  in  its  participation 
in  the  service  of  song,  given  an  organist  who  thinks  he  is 
the  whole  thing,  and  that  the  more  stops  he  pulls  out  the 
more  evident  is  his  musical  capacity,  and  the  organ  be- 
comes a  thing  of  evil,  smothering  and  submerging  the 
choir  and  congregation,  and  absolutely  domineering  over 
the  whole  service  and  neutralizing  all  its  possibilities  of 
good.  On  the  other  hand,  if  you  have  a  large  congrega- 
tion that  sings  with  unanimity  and  power,  requiring  strong 
instrumental  support,  and  an  organist  who  knows  his  own 
proper  place  and  that  of  the  organ,  the  pipe  organ  may 
be  made  a  very  valuable  aid  in  the  public  service. 

In  general  it  may  be  said  that  an  adequate  reed  organ 
fairly  well  played  is  more  serviceable  than  a  pipe  organ 
poorly  played.  The  very  bigness  of  the  pipe  organ  mag- 
nifies the  mistakes  and  inefficiency  of  an  incompetent 
organist.     There   is  simply  no  getting  away   from  his 


374  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

blunders.  What  an  agony  it  is  to  a  musical  soul  to  live 
in  an  atmosphere  that  is  pulsing  and  throbbing  with 
blunderous  noises,  that  is  quivering  and  thrilling  with  mis- 
takes of  technic  and  interpretation  that  hammer  like 
colossal  demons  at  his  ears,  from  whose  bellowing  tor- 
tures he  cannot  escape.  Yes,  there  are  master-hands  be- 
neath whose  touch  the  pipe  organ  sings  like  a  hermit 
thrush  in  the  wilderness  twilight,  murmurs  like  a  moun- 
tain brook,  or  thunders  like  the  gleaming  surf  on  a  rock- 
bound  coast.  But  alas  and  alack  !  The  master-hands  are 
few  and  the  blunderers  come  in  crowds.  Shall  we  have 
a  pipe  organ  ?  That  depends  on  whether  the  size  of  your 
congregation  actually  requires  one,  and  whether  you  can 
secure  a  really  competent  and  genuinely  musical  organist. 
But  whatever  you  do,  prevent  your  church  from  fall- 
ing into  the  "  piano  "  craze.  The  piano  is  all  right  in 
the  Sunday-school,  where  spirit  and  rhythm  characterize 
the  music  and  the  didactic  element  submerges  the  wor- 
shipful. The  piano  is  excellent  for  choir  rehearsals,  as 
its  tones  do  not  cover  up  the  deficiencies  of  the  singers 
individually  and  collectively.  But  in  church  service  the 
piano  is  entirely  out  of  place.  It  lacks  the  dignity  and 
repose  so  essential  to  worship.  The  music  written  for  it 
is  too  unchurchly,  while  the  music  written  for  the  organ 
loses  its  weight  and  effectiveness  when  played  upon  the 
piano. 


VIII 
PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN 

THE  pastor  of  a  church  that  is  planning  to  pur- 
chase a  new  pipe  organ  ought  to  know  enough 
about  such  instruments  to  be  at  least  an  intelli- 
gent adviser,  if  not  the  leader  in  the  movement.  It  has 
seemed  to  me  wise  to  give  only  the  most  important 
facts,  principles,  and  warnings  here,  leaving  the  pastor 
who  desires  a  more  thorough  knowledge  of  this  most  in- 
teresting instrument  to  secure  some  general  treatise  on 
the  subject. 

The  church  that  has  as  an  organist  a  person  of  good 
musical  and  general  judgment,  who  has  had  a  wide  ex- 
perience in  connection  with  the  planning  of  the  specifi- 
cations of  pipe  organs,  has  the  necessary  knowledge  of 
their  materials  and  mechanical  construction,  is  personally 
interested  in  the  congregation  and  its  success,  and  is 
honest,  is  fortunate  indeed.  In  such  a  case,  the  minister 
need  exercise  only  a  sympathetic  general  supervision. 
He  ought,  by  all  means,  to  exploit  the  opportunity  of 
learning  all  he  can  about  the  construction  of  the  instru- 
ment; he  may  have  sore  need  of  such  knowledge  in 
some  later  pastorate. 

If,  on  the  contrary,  his  organist  is  ignorant  of  organ 
construction,  or  is  full  of  notions  and  fads  incompatible 
with  the  true  musical  and  spiritual  interests  of  the 
church,  and  anxious  to  show  his  superior  knowledge  by 
suggesting  and   urging  some  fantastic  combinations,  he 

375 


376  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

will  be  untrustworthy.  He  may  even  have  a  low  sense 
of  honour  and  exert  his  influence  in  favour  of  the  organ 
builder  who  will  allow  him  the  greatest  commission. 
That  the  congregation  really  pays  that  commission  in 
deteriorated  work,  or  in  an  increased  price  for  the  organ, 
hardly  needs  to  be  emphasized. 

If  the  organist  is  not  prepared  to  plan  the  specifica- 
tions and  supervise  the  construction  of  the  proposed 
organ,  it  will  be  eminently  wise  to  secure  a  regular  organ 
architect,  who  for  a  specified  fee  will  plan  and  supervise 
the  manufacture,  erection,  and  voicing  of  the  new  instru- 
ment. Even  here  care  needs  to  be  taken,  for  some  of 
these  organ  architects  are  either  regularly  retained  by 
some  organ  builder  or  are  partisanly  prejudiced  in  favour 
of  some  particular  firm. 

In  perhaps  no  other  business  is  what  you  buy  so 
dependent  on  the  skill,  judgment,  executive  ability,  and 
honour  of  the  manufacturer.  As  every  organ  is  actually 
built  to  order,  no  two  organs  being  built  exactly  alike, 
there  is  no  definite  scale  of  prices.  Financial  compari- 
sons are  therefore  difficult.  Much  of  the  work  is  of  so 
technical  a  character,  and  many  of  the  differences  in  effect 
between  the  good  and  the  bad  in  materials,  workman- 
ship, and  voicing  are  so  beyond  the  discrimination  of 
average  musical  people,  that  judgment  as  to  the  compar- 
ative values  of  different  makes  is  likely  to  be  based 
on  prejudices  and  notions  rather  than  on  really  impor- 
tant considerations. 

It  will  be  wise  to  make  a  tour  of  investigation  among 
the  church  organs  in  a  radius  of  fifty  or  more  miles. 
As  far  as  possible  each  make  should  be  investigated 
separately,  or  there  will  be  confusion  of  impression. 

Not  only  the  tone, — i.  e.t  the  voicing, — of  each  organ 


PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN  377 

should  be  considered,  but  careful  and  minute  inquiry- 
should  be  made  regarding  its  reliability,  its  freedom 
from  irregularity  of  action,  its  susceptibility  to  differences 
of  temperature  and  humidity.  Discriminate  between  the 
organ  itself  and  the  motor.  Many  a  good  organ  has 
been  given  a  bad  name  because  its  electric  or  water  motor 
was  inefficient.  Note  not  only  its  general  voicing,  but 
its  correctness  of  tune  ;  learn  how  often  it  needs  to  be 
retuned.  Mark  the  pitch  and  quality  of  its  reed  stops, 
— oboe,  bassoon,  trumpet,  vox  humana,  etc.  In  order  to 
be  just  to  these  somewhat  unreliable  stops,  you  will  need 
to  ask  when  they  were  tuned  last  and  to  notice 
whether  the  temperature  of  the  room  is  fairly  normal. 
If  a  competent  cabinet-maker  is  on  the  committee,  or 
accompanies  it,  let  him  carefully  examine  not  only  the 
outer  case,  but  the  inside  workmanship  as  well. 

It  will  be  important  to  notice  the  patents  controlled 
by  the  different  builders.  Some  of  them  have  special 
features  of  more  or  less  value  which  are  found 
exclusively  in  their  instruments.  Other  things  being 
equal,  the  firm  controlling  the  most  valuable  recent  im- 
provements will  naturally  have  the  preference.  The 
actual  value  of  such  improvements  must  also  be 
canvassed,  as  very  often  the  solicitors  for  organ  builders 
make  a  talking  point  of  alleged  improvements  whose 
effectiveness  is  more  seeming  than  real. 

Hardly  second  to  the  voicing  of  the  pipes  is  the 
question  of  the  particular  action  used  by  each  of  the 
competing  builders.  It  will  be  a  question  of  promptness 
of  response,  of  simplicity  and  of  reliability.  All  Tracker 
actions  are  not  equally  prompt  or  easy  of  touch.  All 
Tubular-pneumatic  or  Electro-pneumatic  actions  do  not 
respond  with  equal  facility.     Comparisons  in  regard  to 


378  PBACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

the  actions  of  the  different  makes  investigated  will  be 
helpful. 

Builders  are  of  various  classes.  There  are  high-grade, 
medium,  and  cheap.  There  is  usually  more  difference  in 
the  quality  of  the  work  done  between  the  cheap  and  the 
medium  than  there  is  between  the  medium  and  the  high- 
grade.  It  is  in  the  matter  of  the  most  recent  improve- 
ments that  the  high-grade  builders  are  apt  to  have  the 
decided  advantage  over  the  medium-grade  builders. 

While  you  cannot  get  first-class,  skillful  work  done  for 
little  money,  you  cannot  always  judge  of  the  quality  of 
an  instrument  by  the  price  the  maker  asks.  Some 
builders  can  build  more  cheaply  than  others,  because 
they  are  more  economical  in  their  general  management 
and  can  get  more  and  even  better  work  out  of  their 
employees.  Others  take  advantage  of  a  reputation  based 
on  some  large  organ  built  for  a  very  public  place  to  de- 
mand large  profits.  Hence  the  mere  price  paid  should 
not  be  an  important  criterion  in  the  canvass  of  the  merits 
of  any  particular  make. 

There  are  two  methods  of  securing  bids  from  organ 
builders  :  to  decide  quite  exactly  the  specifications  of  the 
organ  you  wish,  determining  the  particular  stops  with 
their  respective  scales  and  the  mechanical  accessories,  and 
ask  for  prices  ;  the  other  will  be  to  state  the  amount  you 
are  willing  to  spend  and  ask  them  to  offer  specifications 
of  the  organ,  adapted  to  your  space  and  needs,  they  are 
willing  to  build  for  that  money.  The  former  is  the  bet- 
ter way,  if  you  have  a  competent  architect.  The  latter 
way  will  give  you  the  benefit  of  the  builder's  experi- 
ence. 

There  will  be  an  astounding  difference  in  the  bids  re- 
ceived.    One  builder  will  offer  an  organ  of  twenty  stops 


PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN  379 

for  the  same  price  that  another  asks  for  ten.  Need  I  say 
that  often  there  will  be  a  nearly  proportionate  difference 
in  the  quality  of  the  materials  and  of  the  workmanship? 

Yet  there  is  something  to  be  said  in  behalf  of  the  cheap 
organ.  Where  there  is  little  culture  of  a  nice  and  fastidi- 
ous character  and  even  more  limited  financial  resources, 
and  where  the  size  of  the  congregation  or  the  character 
of  its  work  calls  for  a  large  instrument,  it  may  be  entirely 
wise  to  contract  for  the  larger  or  cheaper  instrument, 
provided  it  is  substantially  made.  Shoddy,  flimsy  con- 
struction that  will  not  hold  together  permanently  is  dear 
at  any  price. 

One  of  the  first  questions  to  be  settled  will  be  the 
location  of  the  organ.  Happy  is  the  people  the  architect 
of  whose  church  building  was  wise  enough  to  consult 
with  an  organ  expert  as  to  the  best  provision  of  space  for 
this  instrument.  Usually  it  is  forgotten  and  quite  as 
usually  the  best  must  be  made  of  a  bad  situation. 

The  day  of  the  choir  loft  in  the  rear  of  the  audience 
room  is  over  in  the  Protestant  churches  of  our  land. 
Shall  it  be  immediately  back  of  the  pulpit  or  on  one  or 
the  other  side  of  it  ?  That  depends  too  much  on  the  form 
and  plans  of  the  edifice  to  be  settled  here. 

The  space  back  of  the  pulpit  has  much  to  recommend 
it.  There  is  a  sense  of  unity  and  concentration  in  the 
forces  that  cooperate  in  the  service.  The  music  is  given 
worthy  recognition  as  on  a  parity  with  the  sermon.  The 
singers  face  the  congregation  from  the  point  acoustically 
most  advantageous  for  the  music.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
conspicuousness  of  the  choir  magnifies  the  slight  infor- 
malities of  attitude  and  action  in  its  singers  in  a  distract- 
ing and  sometimes  exasperating  way.  What  is  worse, 
few  architects  provide  sufficient  space  for  organ,  chorus 


380  PEACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

choir,  and  pulpit,  with  the  exceedingly  unfortunate  result 
that  room  is  found  only  for  that  modern  ecclesiastical 
abomination,  the  quartet  choir,  shutting  out  the  larger 
possibilities  of  an  ample  chorus  choir  forever. 

There  is  much  to  be  said  in  favour  of  one  of  the  sides. 
For  one  thing  the  organ  and  choir  are  more  likely  to  be 
given  sufficient  room.  The  movements  of  the  choir 
singers  are  less  conspicuous  and  less  likely  to  prove  a  dis- 
traction to  people  with  small  power  of  concentration  of 
attention.  The  slight  changes  of  position  necessary  on 
the  part  of  the  hearer  in  order  to  face  the  singers  is  not 
likely  to  prove  a  serious  objection.  It  is  not  so  prolonged 
as  in  liturgical  churches  where  the  lectern  and  the  pulpit 
are  at  either  side.  There  may  be  architectural  and 
acoustical  reasons  against  placing  the  organ  at  one  side  or 
the  other,  however,  and  those  considerations  will  naturally 
govern. 

An  even  more  important  point  is  the  space  to  be  al- 
lotted. Cramped  space  means  small  wind-chest,  thus 
crippling  the  power  of  the  instrument.  It  also  means 
putting  the  Swell  Organ  above  the  Great  Organ.  As  the 
former  will  be  affected  by  the  greater  heat  of  the  upper 
air,  it  will  be  out  of  tune  with  the  latter  which  is  in  a 
cooler  stratum  of  air.  Furthermore,  the  parts  of  the 
organ  will  be  so  crowded  together  as  to  be  almost  inac- 
cessible. 

Simply  as  a  vague,  general  suggestion  modified  by  the 
quality  of  the  organ,  let  me  say  that  an  average  three 
thousand  dollar  organ  ought  to  have  a  space  equivalent 
to  fifteen  feet  long  and  ten  feet  wide  with  a  height  of 
twenty  feet.  An  average  five  thousand  dollar  organ 
calls  for  a  space  equivalent  to  twenty  feet  long  and  fifteen 
feet  wide,  with  a  height  of  thirty-five  feet. 


PUKCHASING  A  PIPE  OEGAN  381 

It  is  quite  common  to  place  the  organ  in  a  recess.  If 
this  recess  is  sufficiently  large,  and  ample  in  height,  no 
harmful  effects  may  be  noticed.  But  if  the  ceiling  is 
close  to  the  organ,  and  particularly  if  the  opening  into 
the  main  room  above  the  organ  is  closed  by  high  orna- 
mental pipes,  the  consequent  muffling  of  the  tones  robs 
the  instrument  both  of  its  brilliancy  and  of  its  more 
delicate  effects.  Rev.  Sir  Onsely,  the  great  English 
musician,  called  the  organ  recess  "  an  abomination  of 
modern  invention."  The  closer  the  recess  enfolds  the 
organ,  the  more  the  tone  must  be  forced  in  order  to 
secure  the  necessary  power  and  brilliancy,  and  the  more 
effectually  are  the  delicate  effects  smothered.  In  such  a 
case  one-third  of  the  tone  is  lost.  The  higher  dissonant 
harmonic  tones  displace  the  lower  consonant  ones. 

Another  effect  of  a  recess  is  that  the  Swell  Organ  is 
affected  by  the  heat  of  the  room  much  more  slowly  than 
the  more  exposed  Great  Organ,  causing  a  discord  be- 
tween it  and  the  flattened  Great  Organ  that  prevents  the 
use  of  one  or  the  other.  The  recess  also  leads  to  a  re- 
flection or  "  carrying  over "  of  the  tone  of  the  Swell 
stops,  so  that  the  organist  cannot  hear  his  soft  stops  at 
all,  being  in  entire  silence  and  ignorant  of  the  effects 
produced  where  the  congregation  is  seated.  This  often 
explains  the  "  over  accompanying  "  of  many  organists 
who  drown  out  the  soloist  with  unduly  loud  registration. 

While  the  muffling  effects  of  a  recess  whether  open  or 
entirely  closed  can  be  somewhat  neutralized  by  the  ad- 
justed wind  pressure  and  by  the  voicing,  in  general  it  is 
better  to  place  the  instrument  out  in  the  open  audience 
room.  Even  here  a  slanting  ceiling  will  produce  the 
unfortunate  "  carrying  over  "  already  referred  to.  It  will 
be  more  brilliant  and  more  delicate  in  its  effects,  because 


382  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

the  wind  pressure  is  less  forced.  It  will  be  more  equable 
in  its  temperature  and  hence  less  likely  to  be  out  of  tune. 
It  is  less  likely  to  be  subject  to  dampness  and  to  the  con- 
sequent unreliability  of  action  and  to  the  rust  and  de- 
composition of  delicate  materials. 

Once  the  location  has  been  settled  upon,  there  should 
be  a  careful  examination  of  the  foundations.  A  pipe 
organ  with  its  hundreds  of  metal  pipes,  large  and  small, 
weighs  a  number  of  tons  and  if  there  is  any  weakness  in 
the  support,  it  will  soon  become  manifest  in  an  irregular 
settling  that  will  play  havoc  with  the  mechanism  of 
the  instrument.  A  damp  cellar,  just  below  the  floor  on 
which  the  organ  rests,  should  be  guarded  against  by  pro- 
viding an  air  space  between  the  floor  and  the  organ. 

After  the  location  and  the  space  to  be  allotted  to  the 
organ  have  been  agreed  upon,  the  question  of  the  kind 
of  action  to  be  selected  rises  for  answer.  The  action  is 
the  mechanism  used  to  connect  the  keyboard  with  the 
valves  of  the  pipes.  There  are  three  general  types  of 
action, — the  purely  mechanical  Tracker,  the  Tubular- 
pneumatic,  and  the  Electro-pneumatic. 

The  Tracker  action  is  fairly  satisfactory  for  small 
organs.  In  a  large  organ  the  touch  becomes  too  hard 
and  fatiguing.  It  is  not  as  prompt  in  response  as  the 
other  types  of  action.  It  will  not  allow  the  variety  of 
couplers  the  other  actions  permit ;  its  limit  is  four 
couplers,  Swell  to  Great,  Swell  to  Pedal,  Great  to  Pedal, 
and  Swell  superoctave  to  Swell.  It  is  quite  susceptible 
to  dampness,  whether  due  to  location  or  to  weather,  which 
affects  both  touch  and  action.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Tracker  action  is  much  cheaper  than  the  others  and  re- 
quires less  skillful  workmen  to  make  temporary  repairs. 

The  Tubular-pneumatic  action  has  the  advantage  of  the 


PUECHASING  A  PIPE  OEGAN  383 

Tracker  action  in  being  quicker  in  its  reply,  and  in  per- 
mitting an  indefinite  number  of  couplers  and  combina- 
tions, without  in  the  least  affecting  the  touch.  This  latter 
consideration  alone  is  worth  its  extra  cost,  as  by  these 
couplers  the  resources  and  power  of  the  organ  may  be 
indefinitely  multiplied.  Its  touch  is  not  susceptible  to 
atmospheric  conditions.  Its  limitations,  as  compared 
with  the  Electro-pneumatic  action,  are  that  a  separate 
consol  or  keyboard,  often  desirable,  is  immovable,  and 
that  the  further  it  is  placed  from  the  instrument  the 
slower  will  be  the  response. 

The  Electro-pneumatic  action  is  the  most  expensive, 
but  in  addition  to  all  the  advantages  of  the  Tubular-pneu- 
matic action,  is  quicker  in  a  responsiveness  unchanged  at 
any  distance,  and  permits  a  movable  consol  which  is  con- 
nected with  the  organ  only  by  a  cable  of  wires. 

The  excellent  features  in  these  two  latter  types  of 
action  are  somewhat  discounted  by  the  fact  that,  if  any 
irregularity  of  action  or  accident  occurs,  it  will  probably 
be  so  obscure  or  so  technical  as  to  require  a  skilled  organ 
mechanic  who  is  not  always  at  hand.  This  will  be  likely 
to  cause  delay  and  heavy  expense. 

Before  proceeding  to  the  discussion  of  the  selection  of 
stops,  let  me  explain  the  terms  I  shall  use,  some  of  which 
perhaps  I  should  have  made  clear  earlier.  I  have  been 
discussing  a  two  manual  organ  with  pedals.  One  manual, 
or  keyboard,  controls  the  Great  Organ  with  which  are 
associated  the  louder  and  more  brilliant  stops.  The  other 
manual  controls  the  Swell  Organ  in  which  the  softer  and 
more  delicate  stops  are  found.  It  is  so  called  because  its 
pipes  are  enclosed  in  a  box  furnished  with  shutters, 
something  like  Venetian  blinds,  by  the  opening  and 
shutting  of  which  the  variations  of  tone  and  brilliancy 


3S4  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

are  secured.  The  Pedal  Organ  is  controlled  by  the 
pedals,  which  are  played  with  the  feet,  as  the  name  indi- 
cates. 

An  eight-foot  stop  represents  the  normal  pitch  in  its 
relation  to  the  human  voice.  Its  lowest  note  is  called 
double  C,  or  CC,  and  the  open  pipe  producing  it  is  roughly 
speaking  eight  feet  in  length.  A  four-foot  stop  produces 
the  octave  above  the  eight-foot  stop.  A  sixteen-foot 
stop  produces  the  octave  below  the  eight-foot  stop.  The 
name  in  both  c  based  on  the  length  of  the  pipe 

sounding  when  the  lowest  key  on  the  manual  is  pressed 
down. 

The  number  and  choice  of  stops  must  depend  not  only 
on  the  depth  of  the  purse  of  the  congregation,  but  or. 

:  and  its  heartiness  of  participation  in  the  song  serv- 
ice, and  particularly  on  the  size  of  its  audience  room. 
To  get  an  organ  more  powerful  than  a  room  will  bear  is 
to  put  into  the  hands  of  a  possible  ignorant,  irresponsible 
organist  the  power  to  torture  a  helpless  congregation. 
Some  people  think  it  is  better  to  have  an  organ  below 
than  above  the  capacity  of  the  room,  but  most  will  prefer 
to  have  it  exceed  as  a  reserve  for  emergencies. 

Organ  stops  may  be  classified  as  follows  with  reference 
to  the  quality  of  their  tone  :  Organ  Tone  stops,  having 
the  full,  round,  pure  diapason  quality  which  gives  dig 
and  strength;  String  Tone  stops,  having  the  tone  quality 
of  the  stringed  instruments  of  the  violin  family;  Flute 
Tone  stops,  having  the  sparkling,  liquid  quality  of  wood 
wind  instruments  of  the  flute  family ;  and  the  Reed 
Tone  stops,  similar  in  tone  colour  to  the  clarinet  or  oboe. 
These  variations  of  tone  colour  make  the  pipe  organ  the 
;  of  musical  instruments. 

Conditions  and  tastes  vary  too  greatly  that  I  should 


PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN  385 

formulate  sets  of  specifications  to  be  adopted  as  they 
stand.  It  will  be  more  helpful,  it  seems  to  me,  to  give  a 
few  hints  as  to  the  relative  importance  and  usefulness  of 
the  more  usual  stops  and  mechanical  accessories. 

In  planning  the  Great  Organ,  the  genuine  organ  tone 
stop,  the  Open  Diapason,  must  come  first.  This  is  in- 
dispensable no  matter  what  the  size  of  the  organ.  Next 
indispensable  to  this  eight-foot  stop  is  its  octave,  a  four- 
foot  stop,  sometimes  called  Octave,  and  sometimes  Prin- 
cipal. These  two  stops  have  the  same  diapason  quality. 
The  latter  may  be  replaced  by  the  Gemshorn,  a  some- 
what lighter  four- foot  stop  with  a  sympathetic  flute  tone 
which  adapts  it  to  solo  uses.  Another  valuable  eight- 
foot  stop  for  the  Great  Organ  is  the  Dulciana,  occasion- 
ally termed  the  Sleepy  Diapason  because  of  its  slow  re- 
sponse. It  has  a  beautiful  gentle  and  delicate  quality  of 
tone,  adapting  it  for  accompaniment  to  solo  Swell  stops 
or  as  a  solo  stop.  Another  valuable  eight-foot  stop  for 
the  Great  Organ  is  the  Melodia  which  has  a  clear  and 
horn-like  tone.  It  is  a  stop  of  medium  power,  often 
useful  when  the  Open  Diapason  is  too  strong.  This 
stop  is  often  replaced  by  the  Doppel  Floete,  an  eight- 
foot  stop  of  more  body  of  tone,  that  is  equally  effective 
as  a  solo  stop  or  in  combination. 

What  I  have  suggested  above  may  be  accepted  as  the 
essential  stops  in  the  Great  Organ.  If  a  larger  instru- 
ment is  needed,  other  stops  may  be  added,  which  I  sug- 
gest in  the  order  of  the  relative  value  I  should  place 
upon  them.  The  Gamba  is  a  very  stringy-toned  eight- 
foot  stop  of  pronounced  timbre  or  colour.  It  gives 
incisiveness  to  the  full  organ  and  can  be  used  with  good 
effect  as  a  solo  stop.  The  Fifteenth  is  a  two-foot  stop 
that  adds  a  piercing,  brilliant  quality  to  the  full  organ.    A 


386  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

four-foot  stop  useful  for  solo  work  is  the  Flute  d'Amour, 
which  has  a  very  lovely  tone.  If  peculiar  shrillness  and 
brilliance  of  tone  is  desired  in  the  full  organ,  the  Twelfth, 
a  three-foot  stop,  and  three  ranks  of  Mixtures  may  be 
added,  although  modern  taste  does  not  approve  of  them. 
Where  it  can  be  properly  taken  care  of,  the  Trumpet,  an 
eight-foot  reed  stop,  will  be  desirable  both  in  combina- 
tion and  as  a  powerful  solo  stop.  A  second  Open  Dia- 
pason of  smaller  scale  (i.  e.,  of  smaller  diameter)  will  often 
prove  useful,  having  the  same  voice  quality  as  the  larger 
stop,  but  not  quite  so  assertive  and  massive.  In  very 
large  organs  the  Double  Open  Diapason,  a  sixteen-foot 
stop,  is  frequently  used,  adding  great  majesty,  dignity, 
and  power  to  the  tone  of  the  full  organ.  An  organ  of 
this  size  will  need  a  few  more  solo  stops  of  varying  tone 
colour  such  as  Viol  d'Amour,  Clarabella,  Philomela,  Wald 
Floete,  etc. 

The  stops  in  the  Swell  Organ  have  usually  a  quieter 
tone  and  more  of  the  solo  quality  than  those  of  the 
Great  Organ.  There  are  three  stops  that  are  essential, — 
Salicional,  Stopped  Diapason,  and  ^Eoline.  Different 
organists  would  rate  their  value  differently,  but  all  are 
indispensable.  The  Salicional  is  an  eight-foot  open  stop 
with  a  stringy,  almost  reedy,  quality  of  tone,  for  which 
reason  it  is  sometimes  called  Oboe  Salicional.  The 
Stopped  Diapason  is  a  four-foot  wooden  pipe  which  is 
given  an  eight-foot  tone  by  closing,  or  "  stopping,"  the 
ends  of  the  pipes.  This  soft,  mellow  stop  is  very  useful 
both  as  a  solo  stop  and  in  combination.  The  JEol'me  is 
the  softest  stop  in  the  organ,  on  which  the  organist  must 
depend  for  his  most  delicate  effects.  Perhaps  next  in 
importance  comes  the  Violin  Diapason,  an  Open  Dia- 
pason of  small  scale  with  great  smoothness  of  tone  and  a 


PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN  387 

slightly  stringy  quality.  A  very  desirable  stop  for  solo 
use  is  the  Vox  Celeste,  an  eight-foot  stop  with  double 
pipes,  usually  sounding  in  combination  with  either  the 
JEoline  or  the  Salicional,  the  former  to  be  preferred  be- 
cause of  its  superior  delicacy  and  daintiness.  The  two- 
foot  Flautino  is  very  charming  and  sweet,  giving  a  grace- 
ful effect  to  soft  combinations.  The  whispering  effect  it 
produces  with  Swell  Bourdon  is  very  striking.  Bourdon 
is  practically  a  sixteen-foot  Stopped  Diapason.  It  has  a 
dignity  and  a  mellowness  of  tone  that  fits  it  for  occasions 
of  great  solemnity.  The  Flute  Harmonique,  which  has  a 
bright  silvery  tone,  is  a  four-foot  stop  that  is  admirable 
for  solo  purposes  and  in  combination. 

The  Swell  Organ  will  be  the  richer  for  having  in  addi- 
tion to  the  above  several  reed  stops,  provided  there  is  a 
competent  tuner  either  in  the  community  or  within  reach 
to  keep  them  in  order.  The  Oboe,  either  as  a  single 
stop  running  through  the  whole  range  of  the  instrument, 
or  divided  into  two  stops,  Oboe  and  Bassoon,  is  an 
eight-foot  stop  of  striking  tone  colour.  The  less  fre- 
quent Vox  Humana,  if  rightly  voiced  and  under  com- 
petent supervision,  and  if  not  used  too  frequently,  is  an 
exquisitely  beautiful  stop.  It  is  a  luxury,  however,  and 
is  not  at  all  appropriate  in  a  small  organ,  where  it  will  be 
used  so  frequently  that  its  sweetness  will  become  cloying 
and  nauseating.  The  same  may  practically  be  said  of 
the  Vox  Angelica. 

The  number  of  stops  in  the  Pedal  Organ  will  depend 
on  the  number  of  stops  and  couplers  in  the  Great  and 
Swell  Organs  which  it  is  to  support.  An  organ  of  less 
than  ten  stops  ought  to  have  only  a  sixteen-foot  Bourdon. 
Softer  pedal  effects  can  be  provided  for  by  means  of 
couplers  to  Swell  and  Great  Organs,  although  Lieblich 


383  PRACTICAL  CHURCH  MUSIC 

Gedacht,  an  eight-foot  stop  of  quiet  tone,  is  often  used 
for  this  purpose.  If  there  are  many  couplers,  "  sub  "  and 
"  super,"  and  ten  or  more  stops,  the  Pedal  Organ  should 
include  the  massive  sixteen-foot  Open  Diapason.  Only 
for  a  very  large  auditorium  and  an  unusually  large  organ 
will  there  be  any  call  for  the  Double  Open  Diapason, 
a  thirty-two-foot  stop  of  overwhelming  majesty  and 
grandeur.  Before  this  stop  becomes  necessary,  there  will 
be  room  for  the  Violone  or  the  Violoncello,  softer-voiced 
stops  with  the  quality  of  the  lowest  stringed  instruments. 

Special  attention  should  be  given  to  the  couplers. 
Swell  to  Great,  Swell  to  Pedal,  Great  to  Pedal,  Swell 
superoctave  to  Swell,  Swell  suboctave  to  Swell,  Swell 
superoctave  to  Great,  Swell  suboctave  to  Great,  are  all 
well-nigh  indispensable.  Where  great  power  is  de- 
manded, Great  superoctave  to  Great,  Great  suboctave  to 
Great,  and  Pedal  superoctave  to  Pedal  will  be  desirable. 
These  couplers  should  be  controlled  by  tablets  wherever 
possible.  It  is  well  to  add  seven  to  twelve  more  pipes 
to  the  upper  part  of  all  Swell  stops  than  appear  on  the 
manual  in  order  to  make  the  superoctave  coupler  effective 
in  the  higher  notes. 

Then  there  are  Combination  Pistons  which  bring  on 
certain  fixed  or  variable  combinations  of  stops  which  are 
occasionally  convenient,  although  by  no  means  as  impor- 
tant as  the  couplers. 

There  are  also  several  pedal  mechanisms  that  are 
essential :  the  Balanced  Swell  Pedal  which  controls  the 
Swell  Box ;  the  Full  Organ  Pedal  which  makes  every 
stop  and  coupler  immediately  effective ;  the  Grand  Cres- 
cendo Pedal  which  gradually  brings  on  the  stops  from 
the  softest  to  the  Full  Organ  and  vice  versa.  Then 
there  are  Combination  Pedals  which  may  take  the  place 


PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN  389 

of  the  Combination  Pistons,  or  be  added  to  them,  so 
furnishing  greater  variety. 

Every  organ  should  also  have  a  Tremolo.  While  an 
organist  of  tawdry  taste  will  abuse  it,  there  are  times 
when  it  is  so  essential  to  the  musical  effect  that  its  misuse 
must  be  endured. 

Organ  builders  are  no  better  and  no  worse  than  other 
builders  and  contractors ;  that  means  they  will  bear 
watching  !  There  should  be  the  same  care  in  preparing 
plans,  specifications,  and  contract  that  is  exercised  in  the 
erection  of  the  church  edifice  itself.  Vaguely  worded 
specifications  are  frequently  agreed  to  by  guileless  organ 
committees  which  permit  abuses  and  "just  as  good" 
cheap  substitutions  that  would  never  have  been  allowed 
if  properly  understood.  See  to  it  that  the  specifications 
give  not  only  the  stops  and  mechanical  accessories,  but 
the  number  of  pipes  in  each  stop,  the  material  it  is  to  be 
made  of,  whether  open  or  stopped,  its  exact  scale  in 
inches,  the  thickness  of  its  materials,  whether  wood  or 
metal. 

Let  me  give  you  a  few  warnings  against  some  of  the 
more  common  u  tricks  of  the  trade  "  in  organ  building. 
It  would  take  a  technical  volume  to  enter  into  the  details 
of  all  of  them.  The  usual  practices  to  be  guarded  against 
are,  1st,  the  use  of  half  length  stopped  pipes  in  place  of 
full  length  open  pipes  in  the  lower  twelve  notes ;  2d,  the 
substitution  of  wood  for  metal  in  the  lower  twelve  notes 
of  stops  that  ought  to  be  made  of  metal  throughout; 
3d,  the  use  of  cheap  soft  woods,  or  even  of  good  wood 
of  insufficient  thickness  ;  4th,  the  use  of  cheap  metal  for 
the  pipes. 

See  that  your  Open  Diapason  pipes  are  full  scale,  all 
metal  and  all  open.     It  is  a  very  common  trick  to  put 


390  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

into  the  specifications  metal  and  wood.  The  lower 
twelve  notes  are  then  made  of  wood  and  stopped  at  that, 
robbing  the  tone  of  its  strength  and  roundness.  The 
same  is  even  more  true  of  Violin  Diapason  or  Swell  Open 
Diapason,  as  the  half  length  stopped  pipes  allow  a  much 
smaller  and  less  expensive  swell-box. 

It  often  happens  that  the  lower  twelve  pipes  of  the 
Open  or  Violin  Diapason  in  the  Swell  serve  for  the 
Salicional  as  well,  saving  the  builder  the  expense  of 
twelve  large  pipes.  When  both  stops  are  drawn  the  bass 
is  weaker  for  the  missing  pipes.  In  all  these  cases  insist 
on  having  sixty-one  open  metal  pipes  in  the  specifications 
and  in  the  organ  as  well.  Mark  well  the  four  words, 
sixty-one,  open,  metal,  and  pipes  (not  notes).  The  Flute 
Harmonique  is  an  all  metal  stop — sixty-one  open  metal 
pipes.  See  that  the  Salicional  is  specified  sixty-one  open 
metal  pipes  or  a  builder  whose  sense  of  honour  has  a 
coarse  grain  will  use  a  short  pipe  with  a  metal  cap.  This 
will  sound  the  fifth  quite  prominently  and  offensively. 

The  Stopped  Diapasons  are  made  of  wood,  preferably 
spruce  pine.  Poplar  is  frequently  used  by  fairly  good 
builders,  but  it  is  a  softer  and  less  resonant  wood.  Bass- 
wood  should  never  be  permitted.  The  heavier  the  wood, 
within  reasonable  bounds,  the  richer  the  tone.  The 
larger  pipes  should  not  be  made  of  less  than  inch  stuff 
and  will  be  all  the  better  for  being  three-sixteenths  of  an 
inch  thicker, — smaller  pipes  somewhat  in  proportion. 

When  Bourdon  pipes  have  a  small  scale  they  give  a 
light  tone  and  sound  the  twelfth  quite  perceptibly.  In  a 
Vox  Celeste  forty-nine  pipes  are  all  that  are  needed  ;  but 
do  not  permit  the  lower  octave — twelve  notes — to  be 
dropped  out  of  the  Oboe.  The  octave  below  tenor  or 
middle  C  costs  the  builder  as  much  as  all  the  rest  of  the 


PURCHASING  A  PIPE  ORGAN  391 

stops  put  together ;  hence  his  desire  to  stop  at  this  point. 
In  general  be  suspicious  when  you  see  the  word  "  notes  " 
substituted  for  "  pipes  "  in  the  specifications  ;  that  is  prima 
facie  evidence  of  substitution  of  one  kind  or  another. 

Another  trick  to  be  guarded  against  is  to  specify  two 
pedal  stops,  Bourdon  and  Lieblich  Gedacht,  and  then  to 
furnish  only  a  single  set  of  pipes.  If  either  is  then  used 
separately  the  only  harm  that  will  be  done  is  that  the 
Lieblich  Gedacht  is  slightly  out  of  tune;  but  when  you 
wish  to  use  both,  the  Lieblich  Gedacht  is  entirely  absent. 

See  that  the  bellows  are  large  enough,  have  an  ample 
wind  box  below,  have  one  set  of  reversed  folds,  and  are 
supplied  with  three  feeders.  The  bellows  should  be 
double  leathered  inside  and  out  with  the  best  alum- 
tanned  sheepskin.  Remember,  the  more  couplers  you 
have,  the  larger  the  bellows  must  be  ;  but  large  bellows 
spell  large  space,  and  for  a  good  organ  that  must  be  pro- 
vided. 

In  good  actions  you  have  an  individual  supply  of  wind 
for  every  pipe;  otherwise  invariably  correct  tune  will 
be  out  of  the  question.  In  the  Tubular-pneumatic  and 
Electro-pneumatic  actions  it  is  important  that  only  the 
best  quality  of  pneumatic  leather  be  used,  not  varnished 
dress-lining  nor  rubber-lined  cloth.  An  Electro-pneu- 
matic action  should  have  self-cleaning  contacts  with 
sliding  contacts  for  the  couplers. 

Regarding  the  voicing,  let  me  insist  that  the  larger 
part  of  the  work  be  done  after  the  organ  is  in  position  in 
the  room  where  it  is  to  be  used,  in  order  that  the  per- 
emptorily needed  adaptation  of  the  instrument  to  the 
acoustical  character  of  the  room  be  secured.  This  is  lost 
if  the  voicing  is  done  at  the  factory. 

There  has  been  no  purpose,  much  less  effort,  to  be  ex- 


392  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

haustive  in  these  hints  on  organ  building.  Many  im- 
portant matters  have  been  omitted.  The  warnings  I  have 
given  are  simply  suggestive  of  the  need  of  careful  super- 
vision of  both  the  specifications  and  the  construction. 
They  will  have  done  their  best  service,  if  they  lead  the 
minister  and  his  organ  committee  to  secure  the  advice 
and  supervision  of  a  competent  and  reliable  organ  archi- 
tect. 


CONCLUSION 

IN  concluding  this  study  of  principles,  methods,  and 
plans  in  practical  church  music,  let  me  recapitulate 
the  essential  ideas  we  have  been  considering. 

The  primary  effect  of  music  is  nervous  only.  It  pro- 
duces the  same  impressions  upon  the  nerves  as  does 
emotion,  and  thus,  by  association  of  ideas,  it  vaguely 
suggests  emotion.  It  only  prepares  the  way  for  in- 
telligent emotion ;  it  does  not  create  it.  Presenting  no 
definite  intellectual  ideas,  but  affecting  only  the  physical 
side  of  feeling,  its  field  of  influence  is  wholly  emotional  in 
character. 

The  intelligent  basis  of  the  emotion  called  forth  by  the 
use  of  music  must  be  furnished  by  the  accompanying 
text  and  associated  exercises.  Furthermore,  music  has 
relation  only  to  the  emotional  realization  of  these 
associated  ideas.  Aside  from  emotion,  music  has  no 
normal  appeal  to  the  human  mind.  The  emotional  phases 
of  the  ideas  associated  with  it  must  be  brought  out  and 
emphasized,  therefore,  in  using  music. 

The  primary  impression  of  music  being  physical,  it  has 
no  essentially  religious  character.  It  is  dependent  on  the 
words  and  exercises  associated  with  it,  for  its  moral  or 
religious  value.  Moreover,  it  is  the  emotional  side  of 
these  religious  ideas  which  is  influenced  and  strengthened 
by  the  use  of  music.  Hence  success  in  the  use  of  church 
music  must  depend  on  the  emotional  emphasis  laid  upon 
the  associated  religious  ideas. 

393 


394  PEACTICAL  CHUKCH  MUSIC 

Church  music  is  applied,  not  ideal  art.  It  must  be  in- 
fluenced, not  only  by  the  emotional  phases  of  the  religious 
ideas  associated  with  it,  but  also  by  the  immediate  pur- 
pose in  view,  by  the  character  of  the  persons  to  be 
impressed,  and  by  the  available  musical  resources.  It 
can  be  ideal  only  in  its  degree  of  adaptation  to  these  con- 
ditioning factors. 

There  can  be  no  abstract  artistic  standard  in  church 
music,  therefore,  by  which  it  is  to  be  judged.  Good 
church  music  in  one  community  may  be  poor  church 
music  in  another  of  different  race,  history,  grade  of 
intelligence,  or  opportunities  for  culture.  That  is,  the 
only  standard  in  church  music  is  its  practical  adaptation 
to  the  needs  of  the  given  time  and  place. 

As  church  music  has  no  other  office  than  the  prepa- 
ration for  religious  emotion,  its  creation  and  its  stimu- 
lation, and  as  the  first  essential  of  emotion  is  absolute 
spontaneity,  it  follows  that  the  value  and  efficiency  of 
church  music  will  wholly  depend  on  the  genuineness  of 
the  feelings  of  those  rendering  it,  and  particularly  of 
those  supplying  the  associated  religious  sentiments. 

In  view  of  this,  I  will  be  pardoned  if  I  close  my  dis- 
cussion of  this  highly  important  part  of  church  work  by 
laying  stress  on  the  need  of  deep  and  perfect  sincerity  in 
the  management  and  rendition  of  all  kinds  of  church  music. 
The  crying  evil  in  the  music  of  our  churches  is  its  in- 
sincerity. Many  a  congregation  quite  unwillingly  lays 
itself  liable  to  divine  condemnation  as  a  people  that 
"  draw  near  Me  with  their  mouth,  and  with  their  lips  do 
honour  Me,  but  have  removed  their  heart  far  from  Me, 
and  their  fear  towards  Me  is  taught  by  the  precept  of 
men."  Not  only  our  congregations,  but  our  choirs,  are 
constantly  taking  upon  their  lips  words  they  do  not  even 


CONCLUSION  395 

understand,  much  less  mean  and  feel.  Is  it  any  less 
blameworthy  to  sing  a  lie  than  to  speak  it?  And  can 
any  person  sing  "  I  am  all  unrighteousness  "  in  his  normal 
attitude  of  self-sufficiency  without  being  guilty  of  an  un- 
truth ? 

Now  I  do  not  insist  that  every  one  who  sings  in  the 
congregation  or  choir  shall  be  able  to  comprehend  and 
feel  all  the  heights  and  depths  of  some  of  our  sublime 
hymns,  but  I  do  ask  that  he  enter  with  a  sincere  heart 
and  mind  into  their  general  spirit.  If  a  singer  unfortu- 
nately has  only  one  talent  of  spiritual  insight,  yet  that 
lone  talent  should  be  employed  to  its  full  extent. 

Now,  who  is  to  blame  ?  Forgive  me,  if  once  more  I  lay 
the  responsibility  upon  the  ministers.  They  do  not  enter 
into  the  musical  service,  whether  hymnic  or  choral,  with 
any  sense  of  its  being  actually  worship  ;  they  too  often  look 
upon  it  as  simply  a  conventional  part  of  the  service,  that 
has  a  certain  aesthetic  and  perhaps  moral  value  in  its  ef- 
fect upon  the  congregation,  but  without  relation  to  the 
God  for  whose  honour  the  whole  service  is  presumed  to 
be  held. 

Who  has  not  heard  the  minister  gravely  announce 
after  the  organ  prelude  and  introductory  anthem,  "  We 
will  now  begin  the  worship  of  God  in  the  use  of  hymn 
No.  ."  This  indifference,  as  manifested  in  the  an- 
nouncements of  the  hymns  and  in  the  complete  ignoring 
of  the  anthem  and  other  work  of  the  choir,  has  a  numb- 
ing influence  on  the  congregation  and  choir  alike,  while 
his  lack  of  interest  in  the  work  of  the  choir  in  private — 
except  as  it  may  touch  his  artistic  and  churchly  pride — 
leaves  the  choir  without  spiritual  inspiration  and  wholly 
subject  to  the  purely  artistic  and  musical  impulses  which 
usually  govern  musical  people. 


396  PEACTICAL  CHUECH  MUSIC 

It  naturally  follows  that  the  congregation  will  consider 
and  discuss  the  purely  worldly  side  of  the  choir's  work : 
the  grade  of  music,  the  skill  manifested,  the  purely  artis- 
tic results  achieved ; — the  odious  comparisons  with  other 
choirs  naturally  follow.  The  minister  has  given  the  wrong 
key-note,  and  the  whole  musical  service  is  out  of  tune ! 
The  opening  services  of  song  should  be  so  real,  so  serious, 
so  genuine,  that  the  glory  of  the  Lord  will  fill  the  house 
even  as  it  did  the  temple  of  old,  and  that  the  minister  will 
be  so  lifted  towards  God  that  as  he  prays  before  the  con- 
gregation, the  fire  of  the  Holy  Spirit  will  fall  upon  the 
sacrifices  on  the  heart-altars  of  the  people  and  the  whole 
service  will  become  a  communion  with  the  most  High 
God,  the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 


APPENDIX    I 

Musical  and  Hymnological  Books  Worth 
Owning 

No  effort  has  been  made  to  give  a  full  bibliography.  That  may  be  found  as 
an  appendix  to  Dr.  Pratt's  "  Musical  Ministries."  My  purpose  has  been  to 
give  a  list  of  books  that  will  be  practically  helpful  with  such  slight  comment 
as  will  help  the  musical  worker  in  deciding  what  will  meet  his  need. 


MUSICAL 


Music  and  Musicians.  Albert 
Lavignac.  Henry  Holt  & 
Co.,  New  York.  Very  val- 
uable general  survey  of  music  $3.00 

History  of  Music.  W.  J.  Balt- 
zell.  Theodore  Presser,  Phil- 
adelphia. A  well  organized 
and  clear  statement  of  the  facts  1.75 

Music  in  the  History  of  the 
Western  Church.  Edward  A. 
Dickinson.  Chas.  Scribner's 
Sons,  New  York.  A  very 
scholarly  survey  of  the  history 
of  Church  Music. 

Structure  of  the  Pipe  Organ. 
Wm.  H.  Clarke.  The  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston.  An  excel- 
lent little  manual  that  every 
minister  and  organist  ought 
to  own 1.00 

Illustrations  in  Choir  Accom- 
paniment. Dudley  Buck.  G. 
Schirmer,  New  York.  Abso- 
lutely indispensable  to  a  suc- 
cessful church  organist  .    .    .  3.00 

Purity  in  Music.  A.  G.  Thi- 
baut.  W.  Reeves,  London. 
A  discussion  of  musical  taste 
that  is  a  classic. 

Choirs  and  Choral  Music. 
Arthur  Mees.  Chas.  Scrib- 
ner's Sons,  New  York.  His- 
torical rather  than  practical  in 
character 1.25 


Choir  and  Chorus  Conducting. 
F.  W.  Wodell.  Theodore 
Presser,  Philadelphia.  A  very 
practical,  suggestive  book. 
Well-nigh  indispensable     .    .  1. 50 

Clergy  and  Choir.  Chas.  R. 
Hodge.  The  Young  Church- 
man Co.,  Milwaukee,  Wise. 
While  written  with  Episcopal 
needs  and  difficulties  exclu- 
sively in  view,  it  is  full  of 
valuable  suggestions  .... 

United  Praise.  F.  G.  Edwards. 
J.  Curwen's  Sons,  London. 
Written  for  English  Noncon- 
formist churches,  many  of  its 
hints  and  suggestions  will  be 
valuable  in  America   .    .    . 

English  Hymn  Tunes.  A.  W. 
Malim.  W.  Reeves,  London. 
An  interesting,  gossipy  dis- 
cussion of  hymn  tunes  by  an 
English  clergyman 50 

Sudies  in  Worship-Music.  J. 
S.  Curwen.  J.  Curwen's 
Sons,  London.  Collections  of 
discussions  on  various  topics 
connected  with  all  phases  of 
church  music, — practical,  his- 
torical, descriptive,  and  aes- 
thetic. Very  valuable. 
First  series  . 
Second  series 


75 


5° 


The   Service  of  Song.    A.   G. 


2.00 
1.25 


397 


398 


APPENDIX  I 


Stacy.  A.  S.  Barnes  &  Co., 
New  York.  A  general  dis- 
cussion of  the  use  of  hymns  in 
public  service.  Incidentally 
it    furnishes   a  good  deal    of 

illustrative  matter 1.25 

Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church. 


W.  S.  Pratt.  Fleming  H. 
Revell  Company,  New  York. 
A  very  helpful  and  inspiring, 
as  well  as  charming  discussion 
of  the  general  subject.  Very 
desirable. 


HYMNOLOGICAL 


English  Hymns.  Samuel  W. 
Duffield.  Funk  and  Wag- 
nails,  New  York.  While  by 
no  means  exhaustive,  this  is 
perhaps  the  most  useful  book 
on  the  history  and  illustration 
of  hymns  now  extant  ....  3.00 

The  Hymn  Lover.  W.  Garrett 
Horder.  J.  Curwen's  Sons, 
London.  A  very  strong  and 
illuminative  historical  survey. 
Invaluable 1.75 

Annotations  upon  Popular 
Hymns.  Chas.  S.  Robinson. 
F.  M.  Barton,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 
A  very  useful  collection  of 
comments  and  illustrations  on 
familiar  hymns 2.00 

Our  Hymns  and  Their  Authors. 
W.  F.  Tillett.  Southern  Meth- 
odist Publishing  House,  Nash- 
ville, Tenn.  While  based  on 
the  old  Southern  Methodist 
Hymnal,  it  contains  a  great 
deal  of  most  valuable  ma- 
terial appropriate  in  connec- 
tion with  any  hymnal     .    .    .  2.00 

Immortal  Hymns  and  Their 
Story.  Louis  A.  Banks.  Bur- 
rows Bros.,  Cleveland,  Ohio,  3.00 

Hymns  That  Have  Helped. 
Wm.  F.  Stead.  Review  of  Re- 
views Co.,  London.  Contains 
considerable  material  not  found 
elsewhere.  Indeed,  it  is  true 
that  while  all  of  the  foregoing 
books  necessarily  have  a  good 
deal  of  material  in  common, 
every  one  has  enough  unique 
matter  to  make  it  worth  while 
to  own  them  all 75 


Dictionary  of  Hymnology.  John 
J.  Julian  (New  and  Revised 
Edition).  Chas.  Scribner's 
Sons,  New  York.  The  final 
authority  regarding  hymns. 
Encyclopedic  in  its  scope     .  10.00 

Evenings  with  the  Sacred  Poets. 
Frederick   Saunders.     A.    D. 

F.  Randolph  &  Co.,  New 
York.  A  literary  discussion 
of  hymns,  rich  with  rare  and 
unusual  material 2.50 

The  Romance  of  Psalter  and 
Hymnal.     R.  E.  Welsh  &  F. 

G.  Edwards.  Pott  &  Co., 
New  York.  A  good  deal  of 
historical  matter  regarding 
hymn  tunes  adds  value  to  this 
book      2.40 

The  Story  of  the  Hymns  and 
Tunes.  Theron  Brown  & 
Hezekiah  Butterworth.  Amer- 
ican Tract  Society,  New  York. 
Very  much  superior  in  accu- 
racy and  general  usefulness 
to  Butterworth's  two  books  on 
the  same  subjects 1.50 

The  History  and  Use  of  Hymns 
and  Hymn  Tunes.  David  R. 
Breed.  Fleming  H.  Revell 
Company,  New  York.  While 
not  always  trustworthy  in  its 
statements  of  facts  or  in  its 
judgments,  it  gives  the  most 
methodical  and  comprehensive 
review  of  the  whole  subject 
found  anywhere 1. 50 

Hymns  and  Choirs.  Austin 
Phelps,  E.  A.  Park,  and  Dan- 
iel L.  Furber.  WT.  F.  Draper, 
Andover,  Mass.    While  issued 


APPENDIX  II 


399 


half  a  century  ago  and  difficult 
to  secure,  this  book  contains 
invaluable  hymnological  dis- 
cussions not  accessible  any- 
where else. 
Illustrated  History  of  Hymns. 
Edwin  M.  Long.  Ziegler  & 
Co.,  Philadelphia,  Pa.  Chiefly 
valuable  for  the  anecdotal 
material  it  contains     ....  2.50 


The  Gospel  Worker's  Treasury. 
E.  S.  Lorenz.  Contains  a 
large  number  of  anecdotes  il- 
lustrating standard  hymns 
and  Gospel  songs.  How- 
ever, the  main  purpose  of 
the  book  is  to  supply  il- 
lustrative anecdotes  for  re- 
vival work I.50 


APPENDIX    II 

Choice  Church  Music  for  Choir  and  Solo  Use 

There  is  such  an  immense  amount  of  music  issued  for  church  use  that  the 
average  pastor  and  music  director  is  bewildered  in  making  a  choice.  I  have 
ventured  to  supply  a  suggestive  list  that  may  serve  as  a  guide.  The  basis  of 
selection  has  been  chiefly  wideness  of  use.  My  personal  taste  has  not  been 
consulted,  although  I  have  used  my  judgment  when  the  limitations  of  space 
compelled  the  exclusion  of  titles  that  seemed  to  have  good  claim  to  appear 
here. 


A.     CANTATAS  FOR  CHURCH  USE 

Arranged  somewhat  in  the  order  of  their  grade  of  difficulty  under  each 
head,  beginning  with  the  easiest. 

CHRISTMAS 


Gloria   in   Excelsis.     E.    S.  Lorenz. 

The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 
The  Nativity.    Adam  Geibel.    Adam 

Geibel  Music  Co.,  Phila. 
The    Prince  of  Peace.     E.  L.  Ash- 
ford.     The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 

N.  Y. 
The    Great     Light.     Finley    Lyon. 

The  Fillmore  Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  O. 
Redeemer     and     King.     Carrie    B. 

Adams.     The    Lorenz  Publishing 

Co.,  N.  Y. 
The     Incarnation.     Adam     Geibel. 

Adam  Geibel  Music  Co.,  Phila. 
The    Hope    of    the   World.     P.    S. 

Schnecker.     Oliver     Ditson    Co., 

Boston. 
The  Light  of  Life.     E.  L.  Ashford. 

The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 


The  New  Born  King.     Hugh  Blair. 

Arthur  W.  Schmidt,  Boston. 
The    Son    of   the   Highest.     E.   S. 

Lorenz.     The    Lorenz  Publishing 

Co.,  N.  Y. 
The     Adoration.     Geo.    B.    Nevin. 

Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 
The  Shepherd's  Vision.     Horatio  W. 

Parker.     Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y. 
Promise     and    Fulfillment.     E.    L. 

Ashford.     The  Lorenz  Publishing 

Co.,  N.  Y. 
The  Coming  of  the  King.     Dudley 

Buck.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 
Salvator.     Roberta  Geddes  Harvey. 

C.  W.  Thompson  &  Co.,  Boston. 
The  Holy  Child.     Horatio  W.  Par- 
ker,    G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 


400 


APPENDIX  II 


EASTER 


The  Conquering  King.  Ira  B.  Wil- 
son. The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y. 

The  Crucified.  George  B.  Nevin. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 

The  Easter  Evangel.  E.  S.  Lorenz. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 

Easter  Praise.  Carrie  B.  Adams. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 

The  Risen  King.  P.  A.  Schnecker. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 

Easter  Dawn.  E.  L.  Ashford.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 

The  Resurrection.  Chas.  F.  Manney. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 

The    King   of  Glory.     E.    L.   Ash- 


ford.    The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co. 

N.  Y. 
The   Story    of    the    Cross.     Dudley 

Buck.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 
The    First    Easter.     Ira  B.   Wilson. 

The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 
Cross  and  Crown.     E.  L.  Ashford. 

The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 
The  Darkest  Hour.     Harold  Moore. 

Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y. 
Christ    the    Victor.     Dudley    Buck. 

G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 
The    Easter    King.      Caryl    Florio. 

The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 
The  Crucifixion.     Dr.  John  Stainer. 

Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 


HARVEST  HOME  AND  THANKSGIVING 
Seedtime    and    Harvest.     Myles  B. 

Foster.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 
A    Day  of    Thanksgiving.     F.    W. 

Peace.    Arthur  P.  Schmidt,  Boston. 


A  Song  of  Praise. 
Shackley.  Arthur 
Boston. 


Frederick   N. 
P.    Schmidt, 


GENERAL  CHOIR  CANTATAS 


The  Peace  of  Jerusalem.  J.  Eliot  Trow- 
bridge.   Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 

The  Beatitudes.  E.  L.  Ashford. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y. 

The  Fatherhood  of  God.  P.  A. 
Schnecker.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston. 

Faith  and  Praise.  John  A.  West. 
Clayton  F.  Summy  Co.,  Chicago. 

I  do  not  add  the  well-known  cantatas  and  oratorios  of  the  great  composers, 
for  in  the  churches  where  they  can  be  rendered  the  musical  leaders  presumably 
need  no  help  of  this  kind. 


The  Triumph  of  David.  Dudley 
Buck.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 

The  Holy  City.  Alfred  R.  Gaul. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston,  or  G. 
Schirmer,  N.  Y. 

The  Prodigal  Son.  Arthur  D.  Sul- 
livan. G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.,  or 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 


MISCELLANEOUS  CANTATAS 

Religious,  Semi-secular,  and  Secular. 


Picnic  in  Fairyland.     E.  S.  Lorenz. 

The      Lorenz      Publishing      Co., 

N.  Y 
Under  the  Palms.     George  F.  Root. 

The  John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O. 
The  Haymakers.     George  F.  Root. 

Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 


The    National    Flower.     Carrie   B. 

Adams.     The   John   Church   Co., 

Cin.,  O. 
Esther.     Wm.  B.  Bradbury.     Oliver 

Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 
David,  the  Shepherd  Boy.    George  F. 

Root.  The  John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O. 


APPENDIX  II 


401 


Ruth,  the  Moabitess.  J.  Astor 
Broad.  White-Smith  Music  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  Boston. 


Joseph.  J.  Astor  Broad.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co.,  Bos- 
ton. 


B.     SHEET  MUSIC  FOR  CHURCH  USE 

In  making  a  selection  of  the  most  popular  and  useful  sheet  music,  I  have 
depended  not  only  on  my  own  experience  and  judgment,  but  on  the  report 
by  the  publishers  of  the  compositions  having  the  largest  sale.  As  these 
publishers  represent  varying  ideals  and  tastes,  this  list  will  represent  corre- 
sponding adaptation  to  different  needs  and  requirements.  That  this  list  does 
not  contain  many  valuable  solos  and  duets  that  deserve  mention,  I  am  free  to 
allow.  The  limits  of  space  had  to  be  considered.  The  prices  here  given  are 
list  prices,  from  which  a  discount  of  fifty  per  cent,  is  usually  given. 


i.     SOLOS  FOR  HIGH  VOICE 


(Soprano 

The  Pilgrims  of  the  Night. 
Henry  Parker.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 60 

Take  My  Hand,  O  Father.  L. 
F.  Brackett.  C.  W.  Thomp- 
son &  Co.,  Boston       50 

The  Prince  of  Peace  is  King. 
Victor  Hammerel.  J.  Fischer 
&  Bra,  N.  Y 60 

Just  for  To-day.  Jane  B.  Ab- 
bott. C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago 50 

More  Love  to  Thee,  O  Christ. 
Lillian  F.  Sheldon.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston 50 

Face  to  Face.  Herbert  Johnson. 
Waldo  Music  Co.,  Boston  .    .    .60 

The  Homeland.  E.  W.  Hans- 
com.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 50 

Fear  Not  Ye,  O  Israel.  Dudley 
Buck.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.  .    .50 

The  Voice  Divine.  Chas.  H. 
Gabriel.  The  Fillmore  Bros. 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 35 

Recessional.  Reginald  De- 
Koven.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

Forever  with  the  Lord.  Chas. 
Gounod.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston. 

Unanswered.  J.  W.  Bischoff. 
The  John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.   .75 


or  Tenor) 

Come,  Jesus,  Redeemer.  J.  C. 
Bartlett.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston. 

Like  as  the  Hart.  John  A. 
West.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston  50 

Come  Unto  Me.  C.  B.  Hawley. 
G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y 50 

The  Endless  Day.  Herbert 
Johnson.  Waldo  Music  Co., 
Boston 60 

The  Holy  City.  Stephen  Adams. 
Boosey&Co.,N.Y.  (See  note.)  .75 

Alone  with  Thee.  Eben  H. 
Bailey.  White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston  .    .    .    .50 

Star  Divine.  W.Rhys-Herbert. 
J.  Fischer  &  Bro.,  N.  Y.         .    .75 

I  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus  Say. 
F.  G.  Rathbun.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 40 

Shepherd  of  Israel.  H.  W.  Har- 
ris. C.  F.  Summy  Co.,  Chi- 
cago   50 

Consider  and  Hear  Me.  Alfred 
Wooler.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 60 

Come  to  the  Land  of  Rest. 
Philip  Greeley.  White-Smith 
Music  Publishing  Co.,  Boston    .60 

I'm  a  Pilgrim.  Herbert  John- 
son. Waldo  Music  Co.,  Bos- 
ton     60 


402 


APPEXDIX  II 


Peace  I  Leave  with  You.  Chas. 
E.  Tinney.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 50 

Thy  Will  be  Done.  Francis 
Boehr.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.  .    .60 

Just  as  I  Am.  C.  B.  Hawley. 
The  John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.    .60 

Ballad  of  the  Trees  and  the  Mas- 
ter. Geo.  A.Chadwick.  Oliver 
DitsonCo.,  Boston.  (See note.)   .50 

Abide  With  Me.  E.  L.  Ash- 
ford.  The  John  Church  Co., 
Cin.,  0 50 

I'm  a  Pilgrim,  I'm  a  Stranger. 
G.  W.  Marston.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 40 

The  Shadows  of  the  Evening 
Hours.  F.  G.  Rathbun. 
Theodore  Presser,  Phila.        .     .50 

Easter  Yoices  (with  violin  ad 
lib.).  J.  Wiegand.  J.Fischer 
&  Bro.,  N.  Y 60 

Far  from  My  Thoughts.  J.  A. 
West.  C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago 60 

The  Earth  is  the  Lord's.  Frank 
Lynes.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 60 

Callest  Thou  Thus,  O  Master. 
Geo.  A.  Mietzke.  G.  Schir- 
mer, N.  Y 60 

My  Redeemer  and  My  Lord. 
Dudley  Buck.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 75 


As  Christ  upon  the  Cross.  F. 
F.  Bullard.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston.     (See  note.)  .    .    .50 

Evening  and  Morning.  Max 
Spicker.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    .60 

There  is  a  Land  Mine  Eye 
hath  Seen.  Mary  B.  Crow- 
ninshield.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 50 

Crossing  the  Bar.  Chas.  Wil- 
leby.  The  John  Church  Co., 
Cin.,  O 60 

Come  Hither  and  Behold.  Dud- 
ley Buck.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston.     (See  note.) 75 

I  Do  Not  Ask,  O  Lord.  (Yio- 
lin  obligate)  Chas.  D. 
Spross.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

Just  as  I  Am.  E.  Cutter,  Jr. 
Arthur  P.  Schmidt,  Boston    .    .50 

Heaven  is  My  Home.  Oley 
Speaks.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

Of  Such  is  the  Kingdom  of 
God.  W.  L.  Blumenschein. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston. 
(See  note.) 50 

The  Birthday  of  a  King.  Wm. 
H.  Neidlinger.  G.  Schirmer, 
X.  Y 40 

The  Ninety  and  Nine.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 50 


2.     SOLOS  FOR  MEDIUM  VOICE 

(Mezzo  Soprano  and  Baritone) 


Close  to  Thee.  C.  S.  Briggs. 
Theodore  Presser,  Phila.    .    .     .50 

Ten  Thousand  Times  Ten  Thou- 
sand. Frank  H.  Brackett. 
C.  W.  Thompson  &  Co.,  Bos- 
ton      60 

Awake,  My  Soul.  J.  Wiegand. 
J.  Fischer  &  Bro.,  N.  Y.     .    .     .40 

The  King  of  Love  My  Shepherd 
is.  W.  F.  Sudds.  J.  Fischer 
&  Bro.,  N.  Y 40 

Shepherd  of  Israel.  H.  W. 
Harris.  C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago 50 


Upheld.  E.  S.  Hosmer.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston      .... 

Not  a  Sparrow  Falleth.  J.  L. 
Gilbert.  White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston 

Face  to  Face.  Herbert  Johnson. 
Waldo  Music  Co.,  Boston  .    . 

One  Sweetly  Solemn  Thought. 
R.  S.  Ambrose.  T-  Fischer  & 
Bro.,  N.  Y.  .    .    .' 

The  Forty-Second  Psalm.  John 
Emil  Ecker.  J.  Fischer  & 
Bro.,  N.  Y 

I'm  a  Pilgrim,  I'm  a  Stranger. 


.60 


•50 
.60 


.40 


.60 


APPENDIX  II 


G.  W.  Marston.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 40 

The  Ninety  and  Nine.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 50 

Fear  Not  Ye,  O  Israel.  Dud- 
ley Buck.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 50 

Through  Peace  to  Light.  Lil- 
lian T.  Sheldon.  J.  Fischer 
cV  Bra,  N.  Y 40 

Consider  and  Hear  Me.  Alfred 
Wooler.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 60 

The  Birthday  of  a  King.  Wm. 
H.  Neidlinger.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 40 

The  Earth  is  the  Lord's.  Frank 
Lynes.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 60 

One  Day  Nearer  Home.  J.  P. 
Vance.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 50 

Thy  Will  be  Done.  Francis 
Boehr.    G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.  .     .60 

At    Eventide.     E.    S.    Lorenz. 


The   Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 

N.  Y 50 

Come  Unto  Me.  C.  B.  Hawley. 
G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y 50 

Jerusalem,  Awake.  (Easter.) 
Ira  B.  Wilson.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 50 

I'm  a  Pilgrim.  Herbert  Johnson. 
The  Waldo  Music  Co.,  Boston  .60 

O  Thou  Pilot  of  My  Soul.  Will 
A.  Harding.  The  Fillmore 
Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  0 50 

Labour  and  Love.  E.  L.  Ash- 
ford.  The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 50 

Heaven  is  My  Home.  Tonzo 
Sauvage.    G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    .50 

The  Port  of  Heaven.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 50 

O  Paradise,  O  Paradise.  J. 
Lewis  Browne.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

The  Endless  Day.  Herbert 
Johnson.  The  Waldo  Music 
Co.,  Boston 60 


SOLOS  FOR  LOW  VOICE 
(Alto  or  Bass) 


Rest.  J.  W.  Bischoff.  Theo- 
dore Presser,  Phila 40 

Awake,  My  Soul.  John  Wie- 
gand.  J.  Fischer  &  Bra, 
N.  Y 40 

Resignation.  E.  L.  Ashford. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 60 

The  Shadows  of  the  Evening 
Hours.  F.  G.  Rathbun. 
Theodore  Presser,  Phila.    .    . 

Shepherd  of  Israel.  H.  W 
Harris.  C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago 50 

More  Love  to  Thee,  O  Christ. 
Lillian  F.  Sheldon.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston  .... 

Alone  with  Thee.  Eben  H. 
Bailey.  White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston  .    .    . 

Peace  I  Leave  with  You.    Chas. 


5° 


S° 


5° 


E.Finney.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 50 

Just  for  To-day.  Jane  B.  Ab- 
bott. C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago 50 

Fear  Not  Ye,  O  Israel.  Dud- 
ley  Buck.    G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    .50 

Just  as  I  Am.  E.  Cutter,  Jr. 
Arthur  P.  Schmidt,  Boston    .    .50 

Just  as  I  Am.  E.  L.  Ashford. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 40 

Callest  Thou  Thus,  O  Master. 
Geo.  A.  Mietzke.  G.  Schir- 
mer, N.  Y 60 

Abide  with  Me.  E.  L.  Ashford. 
The  John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.    .50 

O  God,  Forsake  Me  Not.  For- 
dyce  Hunter.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 60 

The     Earth      is     the      Lord's. 


404 


APPENDIX  II 


Frank     Lynes.     Arthur     P. 

Schmidt,  Boston 60 

Evening     and    Morning.     Max 

Spicker.  G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.  .60 
My  Jesus,    as  Thou  Wilt.     H. 

P.     Danks.      The     Fillmore 

Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  0 50 

0  Love  Divine.  George  B. 
Nevin.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

The     Cathedral    Bell.      E.    S. 

Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 60 

I'm  a  Pilgrim,  I'm  a  Stranger. 

G.  W.   Marston.     Arthur   P. 

Schmidt,  Boston 40 

Face  to  Face.    Herbert  Johnson. 

The  Waldo  Music  Co.,  Boston  .60 
The     Endless     Day.      Herbert 

Johnson.     The  Waldo   Music 

Co.,  Boston 60 

Recessional.     Reginald   De- 

Koven.     The    John    Church 

Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

Abide  with    Me.     L.   C.    Coff- 

man.     C.  W.  Thompson  Co., 

Boston 50 

1  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus  Say. 
F.  G.  Rathbun.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila.  ...    .40 

Easter  Voices.     (Violin  ad  lib.) 

J.    Wiegand.     J.    Fischer    & 

Bra,  N.  Y 60 

Far  from  My  Thoughts.     J.  A. 

West.     C.    F.    Summy    Co., 

Chicago 60 

The     Pilgrims    of   the    Night. 

Henry      Parker.      Theodore 

Presser,  Phila 60 

4.     DUETS  FOR  HIGH  AND  LOW  VOICES 

(Soprano  and  Alto,  or  Tenor  and  Bass,  or  Baritone) 

One  of  the  most  effective  forms  of  church  music  is  the  duet.  It  eliminates 
largely  the  self-consciousness  of  the  solo,  while  preserving  all  its  individuality 
and  directness. 


Take  My  Heart,  O  Father.  L. 
F.  Brackett.  C.  W.  Thomp- 
son Co.,  Boston 50 

The  Homeland.  E.  W.  Hans- 
corn.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston co 

My  Redeemer  and  My  Lord. 
Dudley  Buck.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 75 

Like  as  the  Hart.  John  A. 
West.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 50 

Just  as  I  Am.  C.  B.  Hawley. 
The  John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.    .60 

The  Prince  of  Peace  is  King. 
(Easter.)  Victor  Hammerel. 
J.  Fischer  &  Bro.,  N.  Y.    .    .    .60 

I  Do  Not  Ask,  O  Lord.  (Vio- 
lin obligate)  Chas.  G. 
Spross.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

Star  Divine.  (Christmas.)  W. 
Rhys- Herbert.  J.  Fischer  & 
Bro.,N.Y 75 

Heaven  is  My  Home.  Oley 
Speaks.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 60 

Upheld.  E.  S.  Hosmer.  Ol- 
iver Ditson  Co.,  Boston  ...    .60 

Crossing  the  Bar.  Chas.  Wil- 
leby.  The  John  Church  Co., 
Cin.,  0 60 

Consider  and  Hear  Me.  Alfred 
Wooler.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 60 

I'm  a  Pilgrim.  Herbert  John- 
son. The  Waldo  Music  Co., 
Boston 60 


Crossing  the  Bar.  E.  L.  Ash- 
ford.  The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 50 

O  Love  Divine.  Will  C.  Mac- 
farlane.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    .60 

Doubt  no  More.     (Easter.)     J. 


W.     Hughes.     The     Lorenz 

Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 50 

How  Gentle  God's  Commands. 

E.  W.   Hanscom.     Arthur  P. 

Schmidt,  Boston 50 

In  the  Cross  of  Christ  I  Glory. 


APPENDIX  n 


405 


Adolph  Frey.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston.     (See  note.)       .    .50 

One  Sweetly  Solemn  Thought. 
R.  S.  Ambrose.  J.  Fischer  & 
Bro.,  N.  Y 40 

The  Wideness  of  God's  Mercy. 
Chas.  M.  Davis.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 50 

Abide  with  Me.  P.  A. 
Schnecker.  Theodore  Pres- 
ser,  Phila 50 

Blessed  Saviour,  Thee  I  Love. 
Lange.  C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago 60 

Jesus,  Thou  Joy  of  Loving 
Hearts.  Carl  Goetze.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston 50 

Come  unto  Him.  C.  P.  Mor- 
rison. White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston       .    .     .60 

The  Lord's  Anointed.  E.  L. 
Ashford.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 60 

The  Lord  is  My  Shepherd. 
Henry  Smart.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston .60 

God  is  Love.  Eugene  F. 
Marks.  Theodore  Presser, 
Phila 40 

In  His  Hands  are  All  the  Cor- 
ners of  the  Earth.  P.  A. 
Schnecker.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 50 

Onward,  Christian  Soldiers. 
Fordyce  Hunter.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 60 

My  Soul,  on  God  Rely.  J. 
Wiegand.  J.  Fischer  &  Bro., 
N.  Y 40 

My  Shepherd  is  the  Lord  of 
All.  John  B.  Grant.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston.   (See  note.)  .40 

O  Mother,  Dear  Jerusalem.  A. 
W.  Lansing.  Theodore  Pres- 
ser, Phila 60 

My  Jesus,  as  Thou  Wilt.  P. 
A.  Schnecker.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston      65 


Lead,  Kindly  Light.  Adam 
Geibel.  The  Adam  Geibel 
Co.,  Phila 50 

Fast  Falls  the  Eventide.  A. 
W.  Lansing.  White-Smith 
Music  Publishing  Co.,  Boston    .50 

Hark,  Hark,  My  Soul.  H.  R. 
Shelley.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    .65 

I  Will  Give  Thee  Rest.  H.  W. 
Porter.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 50 

Jesus,  Lover  of  My  Soul.  O.  B. 
Brown.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 60 

Love  Divine,  All  Loves  Excel- 
ling. Adam  Geibel.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co., 
Boston 50 

There's  a  Beautiful  Shore.  C. 
A.  Havens.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 40 

Forever  with  the  Lord.  Homer 
N.  Bartlett.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 50 

I'm  a  Pilgrim.  A.  W.  Nelson. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 50 

Jesus,  the  Very  Thought  of 
Thee.  P.  A.  Schnecker.  Ol- 
iver Ditson  Co.,  Boston.  (See 
note.) 60 

I  Will  Magnify  Thee,  O  Lord. 
J.  Mosenthal.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.Y 75 

The  Beautiful  City.  Ira  B.  Wil- 
son. The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.Y 60 

Inspirer  and  Hearer  of  Prayer. 
Adam  Geibel.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston. 

Lead,  Kindly  Light.  J.  Wie- 
gand.   J.  Fischer  &  Bro.,  N.Y.    .40 

The  Homeland.  E.  W.  Hans- 
corn.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 50 

Ashamed  of  Jesus.  Chas.  M. 
Davis.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 60 


406 


APPENDIX  II 


5.     DUETS  FOR  TWO  HIGH  VOICES 

(Two  Sopranos,  two  Tenors,  or  Soprano  and  Tenor) 


Jesus,  Lover  of  My  Soul.  H.  P. 
Dibble.  Theodore  Presser, 
Phila 40 

I  Waited  for  the  Lord.  Men- 
delssohn. Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 75 

Beyond  Life's  Evening  Star.  E. 
S.  Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 50 

Far  from  My  Heavenly  Home. 
Wm.  G.  Hammond.  The 
John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.  .    .    .75 

The  Lord  is  My  Light.  Dud- 
ley Buck.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 50 

Lead,  Kindly  Light.  A.  W. 
Lansing.  White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston  .    .    .    .50 

While  the  Earth  Remaineth. 
F.  W.  Peace.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 50 

With  a  Shepherd's  Care.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 60 

The  Radiant  Morn  Hath  Passed 


75 


Away.  Mark  Andrews.  The 
John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.  .    . 

Lift  Your  Glad  Voices.  ^Easter.) 
P.  A.  Schnecker.  Oliver  Dit- 
son Co.,  N.  Y. 

Love's  Assurance.  J.  W. 
Hughes.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 60 

The  Pilgrims  of  the  Night. 
Henry  Parker.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 60 

Jesus,  the  Very  Thought  of 
Thee.  J.  H.  Brewer.  Arthur 
P.  Schmidt,  Boston 60 

Pleasant  are  Thy  Courts  Above. 
Frank  H.  Brackett.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co., 
Boston 50 

I  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus  Say. 
F.  G.  Rathbun.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 40 

My  Soul,  There  is  a  Country. 
Chas.  D.  Underhill.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co., 
Boston 60 


6.     DUETS  FOR  TWO  LOW  VOICES 

(Alto  and  Bass,  or  Baritone) 


While  the  Earth  Remaineth. 
F.  W.  Peace.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 50 

My  Soul,  There  is  a  Country. 
Chas.  D.  Underhill.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co., 
Boston 60 

Twilight.  Geo.  B.  Nevin.  Ol- 
iver Ditson  Co.,  Boston  ...    .50 

Crossing  the  Bar.  E.  L.  Ash- 
ford.  The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 50 

I  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus  Say. 
F.  G.  Rathbun.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 40 

Come  unto  Me.  (Violin  obli- 
gate.) R.  Sinnhold.  J. 
Fischer  &  Bro.,  N.  Y 60 

Lead,  Kindly  Light.  A.  W. 
Lansing.  White-Smith  Mu- 
sic Publishing  Co.,  Boston     .    .50 


Jesus,  the  Very  Thought  of 
Thee.  J.  H.  Brewer.  Arthur 
P.  Schmidt,  Boston     ...        .60 

He  That  Soweth  Little.  Frank 
N.  Shepherd.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 35 

Pleasant  are  Thy  Courts  Above. 
Frank  H.  Brackett.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co., 
Boston 50 

The  Lord  is  My  Light.  Dud- 
ley Buck.    G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    .50 

The  Pilgrims  of  the  Night. 
Henry  Parker.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 60 

Rejoice  in  the  Lord.  P.  A. 
Schnecker.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 60 

The  Shadows  of  the  Evening 
Hours.  F.  G.  Rathbun. 
Theodore  Presser,  Phila.    .    .    .60 


APPENDIX  II 


407 


C.     OCTAVO  ANTHEMS 

The  limits  of  this  appendix  forbade  the  inclusion  of  all  the  praiseworthy 
and  effective  anthems  issued  in  this  country  and  in  England.  I  suggest  here 
only  some  of  them.  The  writer's  personal  knowledge  and  the  record  of  sales 
by  the  several  publishers  seem  to  assure  that  every  one  of  these  here  listed  is 
sure  to  be  valuable,  if  properly  rendered  in  the  right  community.  I  need 
hardly  say  that  the  grading  takes  into  account  something  more  than  the  mere 
matter  of  mechanical  difficulty. 


OCTAVO  ANTHEMS,  QUITE  TO  FAIRLY  EASY 
GRADE 


The  Greatest  of  These  is  Char- 
ity. (Offertory.)  J.  B.  Her- 
bert.   Fillmore  Bros.,  Cin.,  O.    .10 

Make  a  Joyful  Noise.  Chas. 
H.  Gabriel.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.         .    .    .10 

O  Lord,  How  Excellent.  J.  S. 
Fearis.  Geo.  F.  Rosche  & 
Co.,  Chicago 06 

There  were  Shepherds.  (Christ- 
mas.) E.  L.  Ashford.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,N.  Y.    .10 

How  Beautiful  upon  the  Moun- 
tains. (Christmas  or  Ordina- 
tion.) Fred.  A.  Fillmore. 
The  Fillmore  Bros.  Co., 
Cin.,  0 10 

Jesus  Christ  is  Risen  To-day. 
Francis  J.  Barrett.  Geo. 
Molineux,  N.  Y 10 

Hosanna.  (Palm  Sunday.)  E. 
S.  Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y.  ...    .12 

When  the  Lord  Shall  Build  up 
Zion.  J.  B.  Herbert.  The 
Fillmore  Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  O.    .     .10 

The  Shepherd's  Good  Care. 
George  B.  Nevin.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston 08 

He  Will  Care  for  Thee.  Chas. 
H.  Gabriel.  The  Fillmore 
Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  0 10 

To  Thee,  My  God  and  Saviour. 
Francis  J.  Barrett.  Geo. 
Molineux,  N.  Y. 10 

Some  Blessed  Day.  Geo.  B. 
Nevin.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 08 


What  a  Comforter  is  Jesus.  E. 
S.  Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 06 

The  Comforter  Came  to  My 
Soul  One  Day.  Geo.  B. 
Nevin.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 08 

Lead,  Kindly  Light.  Cleland 
B.  McAfee.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Abide  with  Me.  W.  E.  Brown. 
White-Smith  Music  Publish- 
ing Co.,  Boston 08 

Make  a  Joyful  Noise.  Fred.  A. 
Fillmore.  The  Fillmore  Bros. 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 15 

My  Country,  'Tis  of  Thee.  E. 
S.  Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

There's  a  Friend  in  the  Home- 
land. C.  A.  Havens.  The 
John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.      .    .12 

The  Unseen  City.  Arthur  W. 
Nelson.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 06 

Come  to  Our  Hearts  and  Abide. 
J.  C.  Macy.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston 08 

Great  is  the  Lord.  M.  L.  Mc- 
Phail.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

One  Sweetly  Solemn  Thought. 
G.  A.  Grant-Schaefer.  Geo. 
F.  Rosche  &  Co.,  Chicago      .    .10 

Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee. 
(Women's  voices.)  Chas.  H. 
Gabriel.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 06 


408 


APPENDIX  II 


Praise  Ye  the  Lord.  (Women's 
voices.)  E.  S.  Lorenz.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .06 

In  the  Beauty  of  the  Gloaming. 
C.  A.  Havens.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 10 

I've  a  Saviour  in  Glory  Bright. 
C.  A.  Havens.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 10 

The  Earth  is  the  Lord's.  W.  J. 
Kirkpatrick.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Wine  is  a  Mocker.  (Tem- 
perance.) J.  B.  Herbert. 
The  Fillmore  Bros.  Co.,  Cin., 

o 15 

Sing  unto  God.  H.  P.  Danks. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 10 

Weary.  W.  H.  Neidlinger. 
Geo.  Molineux,  N.  Y 06 

Oh,  That  Men  Would  Praise 
the  Lord.  Habington.  The 
Fillmore  Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  O.  .     .10 

Oh,  Clap  Your  Hands.  Chas. 
H.  Gabriel.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Fast  Falls  the  Sun  to  Eventide. 
C.  A.  Havens.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 08 

The  Voice  of  Many  Waters.  H. 
W.  Porter.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 08 


Abide  with  Me.  E.  L.  Cran- 
mer.  Theodore  Presser,  Phila.    .08 

Beyond  the  Hilltops.  J.  A. 
Parks.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 06 

Praise  the  Lord.  Chas.  H.  Ga- 
briel. Geo.  F.  Rosche  &  Co., 
Chicago 12 

Lay  Not  up  for  Yourselves 
Treasures.  (Offertory.)  H. 
P.  Danks.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 06 

Beautiful  Land  on  High.  C. 
A.  Havens.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 10 

God's  Nearness.  L.  O.  Emer- 
son. The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 06 

Hear  My  Cry,  O  Father.  Rufus 
O.  Suter.  Theodore  Presser, 
Phila 10 

Bless  the  Lord.  J.  H.  Tenney. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 08 

My  Heavenly  Home.  C.  A. 
Havens.  C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago .    .10 

Rest  in  His  Love.  Franz  Abt. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 06 

Praise  Waiteth  for  Thee.  J.  S. 
Fearis.  Geo.  F.  Rosche  & 
Co.,  Chicago 12 


8.     OCTAVO  ANTHEMS— MEDIUM  GRADE 


Still,  Still  with  Thee.  John  A. 
West.  Clayton  F.  Summy 
Co.,  Chicago 06 

The  Day  is  Past  and  Over. 
Oley  Speaks.  The  John 
Church  Co.,  Cin.,  0 08 

The  Sabbath.  E.  N.  Anderson. 
C.  W.  Thompson  &  Co.,  Bos- 
ton      12 

I  Sought  the  Lord.  Frederick 
Stevenson.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 08 

My  God,  My  Father,  While  I 
Stray.  A.  W.  Lansing. 
White-Smith  Music  Publish- 
ing Co.,  Boston    12 


Crossing  the  Bar.  (Funeral.) 
Chas.  E.  Wheeler.  C.  F. 
Summy  Co.,  Chicago 12 

When  We  Stand  before  the 
King.  George  B.  Nevin.  Ol- 
iver Ditson  Co.,  Boston      .    .    .12 

Let  Mount  Zion  Rejoice.  (Ded- 
ication or  other  festival.) 
J.  B.  Herbert.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.         .    .    .12 

Ten  Responses.  J.  L.  Gilbert. 
C.  W.  Thompson  &  Co., 
Boston 15 

Seven  Responses.  E.  S.  Hos- 
mer.  Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Bos- 
ton     16 


APPENDIX  II 


409 


.08 


.08 


12 


Just  for  To-day.  Jane  B.  Ab- 
bott. C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago         

There's  a  Friend  for  Little  Chil- 
dren. (Children's  Day.)  E. 
S.  Hosmer.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston.     (See  note.)  .    . 

Father,  Keep  Us  in  Thy  Care. 
Sullivan-Hodges.  White- 
Smith  Music  Publishing  Co., 
Boston 

O  Mother,  Dear  Jerusalem.  John 
A.  West.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cm.,  O 

King  of  Kings.  (Easter.)  Caleb 
Simper.  C.  F.  Summy  Co., 
Chicago. 

As  Christ  upon  the  Cross. 
Fred.  F.  Bullard.  Oliver  Dit- 
son Co.,  Boston 

Dreams  of  Galilee.  C.  P.  Mor- 
rison. White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston  .    .    . 

O  Mother,  Dear  Jerusalem. 
Philo  A.  Otis.  C.  F.  Summy 
Co.,  Chicago    . 

March  of  the  Magi.  (Christ- 
mas— for  men's  voices.)  E. 
L.  Ashford.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.     ... 

Rock  of  Ages.  Dudley  Buck. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston  .    . 

Evening  and  Morning.  Herb. 
S.Oakley.  G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 

In  the  Nightwatches.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

The  Love  of  God.  Myles  B. 
Foster.  The  John  Church 
Co.,  Cin.,  0 10 

No  Night  nor  Sorrow  There. 
A.  F.  Loud.  C.  F.  Summy 
Co.,  Chicago 06 

Earth's  Little  While.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

My  Master  and  My  Friend. 
Lyman  F.  Brackett.  C.  W. 
Thompson  &  Co.,  Boston  .    .    .15 

I'm  a  Pilgrim,  I'm  a  Stranger. 
G.  W.  Marston.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt.  Boston 10 


•'5 
•T5 

.10 
.10 

•°5 


A  Prayer.  H.  Engelmann. 
Theodore  Presser,  Phila.    .    .     .10 

Oh,  Come,  Let  Us  Sing.  E.  L. 
Ashford.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Lo  !  The  Day  of  Rest  Declineth. 
H.  Elliot  Button.  Novello  & 
Co.,  N.  Y 06 

O  Lord,  Most  Merciful.  Con- 
cone.  The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Whoso  hath  This  World's  Good. 
(Offertory.)  Philo  A.  Otis. 
Clayton  F.  Summy  Co.,  Chi- 
cago       15 

The  Lord  is  King.  G.  W. 
Marston.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 16 

Remember  Now  Thy  Creator. 
Mrs.  Carrie  B.  Adams.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .10 

Hast  Thou  Not  Known  ?  Carl 
Pflueger.  White-Smith  Mu- 
sic Publishing  Co.,  Boston     .     .25 

The  Shadows  of  the  Evening. 
Frank  E.  Ward.  G.  Schir- 
mer, N.  Y 10 

Hide  Me  Under  the  Shadow. 
John  E.  West.  Novello  & 
Co.,  N.  Y 06 

Praise  the  Lord,  Oh,  My  Soul. 
D.  D.  Wood.  Adam  Geibel 
Music  Co.,  Phila 16 

Oh,  Praise  the  Lord.  F.  H. 
Brackett.  White-Smith 
Music  Publishing  Co.,  Boston    .15 

Just  as  I  Am.  J.  A.  Parks.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .12 

Jubilate,  in  A  Flat.  Willard 
Patten.  George  Molineux, 
N.  Y .15 

Come,  Weary  Soul.  J.  L.  Gil- 
bert. Theodore  Presser, 
Phila 12 

O  Holy  Father.  Marchetti- 
Parks.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 12 

Hark  !  Hark  !  My  Soul.  J.  A. 
West.  The  C.  F.  Summy 
Co.,  Chicago 08 

Jubilate  Deo.  Juan  Alzamora. 
George  Molineux,  N.  Y.    .    .    .20 


410 


APPENDIX  II 


Lift  up  Your  Heads.  E.  L. 
Ashford.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 12 

Peace  and  Light.  Geo.  W.  Chad- 
wick.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 10 

Remember  Thy  Tender  Mercies. 
Henry  Farmer.  George  Moli- 
neux,  N.  Y 12 

O  Paradise !  Adam  Geibel. 
Adam  Geibel  Music  Co., 
Phila 15 

The  Lord  is  King.  E.  L.  Ash- 
ford. The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Come  unto  Me.  C.  P.  Morri- 
son. White-Smith  Music 
Publishing  Co.,  Boston  ...    .10 

The  Friend  Who  Waiteth  Nigh. 
J.  C.  Macy.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston 12 

Oh,  Come,  Let  Us  Sing.  J.  A. 
Parks.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Saviour,  Breathe  an  Evening 
Blessing.  E.  J.  Myer.  George 
Molineux,  N.  Y 12 

Oh,  for  a  Closer  Walk  With 
God.  Adam  Geibel.  Adam 
Geibel  Music  Co.,  Phila.    .    .    .15 

Praise  Ye  Jehovah.  Finley 
Lyon.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 12 

My  God   and   Father,  While  I 


Stray.  G.  W.  Marston.  Ar- 
thur P.  Schmidt,  Boston     .    .    .10 

Saviour,  Breathe  an  Evening 
Blessing.  C.  A.  Havens.  C. 
F.  Summy  Co.,  Chicago     .    .    .10 

Guide  Me,  O  Thou  Great  Je- 
hovah. L.  O.  Emerson.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .10 

Te  Deum  in  G.  Harrison  Mil- 
lard.   George  Molineux,  N.  Y.    .25 

Come,  Ye  Thankful  People, 
Come.  (Thanksgiving.) 
Adam  Geibel.  Adam  Geibel 
Music  Co.,  Phila 12 

He  Shall  Come  Down.  (Christ- 
mas.) E.  S.  Lorenz.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .10 

Guide  Me,  O  Thou  Great  Je- 
hovah. Lambillotte.  The 
Fillmore  Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  O.  .    .15 

Wrhy  Seek  Ye  the  Living 
among  the  Dead?  (Easter.) 
Adam  Geibel.  Adam  Geibel 
Music  Co.,  Phila 15 

I'm  a  Pilgrim.  E.  S.  Lorenz. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 10 

Ten  Thousand  Times  Ten  Thou- 
sand. F.  H.  Brackett.  The 
John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.     .    .10 

One  Sweetly  Solemn  Thought. 
Ambrose-Biederman.  J. 
Fischer  &  Bra,  N.  Y 15 


OCTAVO    ANTHEMS— MORE   OR  LESS  DIFFICULT 
IN  GRADE 


God  is  Love.  H.  R.  Shelley. 
G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.    (See  note.) 

Father  in  Thy  Mysterious  Pres- 
ence. Chas.  P.  Scott.  Ar- 
thur P.  Schmidt,  Boston     .    . 

Ave  Verum.  Edward  Elgar. 
Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y.     ... 

Sing  Alleluia  Forth.  Dudley 
Buck.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston 

The  Woods  and  Every  Sweet 
Smelling  Tree.  John  E.  West. 
Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y.     ... 

Peace   Be   Within   Thy    Walls. 


.10 


.08 


*5 


.06 


E.  L.  Ashford.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Ten  Thousand  Times  Ten  Thou- 
sand. P.  A.  Schnecker.  Ar- 
thur P.  Schmidt,  Boston     .    .    .12 

The  Supreme  Submission.  E. 
S.  Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

How  Sweet  the  Name  of  Jesus 
Sounds.  Wm.  Maxwell  Mu- 
sic Co.,  N.  Y.  H.  R.  Shelley. 
(See  note.) 15 

The  Lord  Reigneth.  Adolf  Frey. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston  .    .    .12 


APPENDIX  II 


411 


Thy  Sun  shall  no  more  Go 
Down.  O.  B.  Brown.  Arthur 
P.  Schmidt,  Boston 16 

I  Will  Lay  Me  down  in  Peace. 
Henry  Hiles.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 05 

Praise  Ye  the  Father.  Gounod. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 10 

Rejoice  Ye  with  Jerusalem. 
Arthur  Page.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 12 

Hark,  Hark,  My  Soul.  H.  R. 
Shelley.  G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y. 
(See  note.) 20 

Lead,  Kindly  Light.  Boyton 
Smith.    Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y.    .10 

I'm  a  Pilgrim.  G.  W.  Marston. 
Arthur    P.  Schmidt,  Boston  .     .10 

The  Day  is  Gently  Sinking  to  a 
Close.  W.  H.  Neidlinger.  G. 
Schirmer,  X.  Y 10 

All  Loves  Excelling.  E.  S. 
Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  X.  Y 12 

The  God  of  Abraham  Praise. 
Dudley  Buck.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston  .  ...     .12 

The  Lost  Sheep.  MylesB.  Foster. 
G.  Schirmer,  X.Y.    (See  note.)  .15 

The  Lord  is  My  Shepherd.  G. 
A.  Macfarren.  G.  Schirmer, 
N.  Y 05 

The  Lord  is  My  Shepherd. 
(Violin  obligato.)  C.  P. 
Morrison.  White-Smith 
Music  Publishing  Co.,  Boston    .16 

The  Lord  is  My  Light.  Hora- 
tio \V.  Parker. 

My  Faith  Looks  up  to  Thee. 
P.  A.  Schnecker.  Oliver  Dit- 
son Co.,  Boston 16 

I  Will  Magnify  Thee,  O  God. 
F.  N.  Shackley.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 12 

The  Day  is  Gently  Sinking  to  a 
Close.  W.  Berwald.  G. 
Schirmer,  X.  Y 10 

Hark,  Ten  Thousand  Harps  and 
Voices.  E.  S.  Lorenz.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .10 

Awake    Up    My   Glory.     Geo. 


W.  Chadwick.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 15 

Fierce  was  the  Wild  Billow.  T. 
T.  Xoble.     G.  Schirmer,  N.  Y.  .05 

Christian,  the  Morn  Breaks.  H. 
R.Shelley.    G. Schirmer, X.Y.  .10 

Blessed  are  They  That  Mourn. 
Henry  Hiles.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  X.  Y IO 

Still,  Still  with  Thee.  Arthur 
Foote.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 12 

Thou  Didst  Leave  Thy  Throne. 
P.  A.  Schnecker.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  X.  Y.  .     .IO 

Xow  the  Day  is  Over.  H.  R. 
Shelley.  Wm.  Maxwell  Music 
Co.,  X.  Y.     (See  note.)     .         .15 

Appear,  Thou  Light  Divine  !  C. 
P.  Morrison.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston 12 

God  to  Whom  We  Look  up 
Blindly.  G.  W.  Chadwick. 
Arthur  P.  Schmidt,  Boston    .     .16 

Stand  Up,  Stand  up  for  Jesus. 
P.  A.  Schnecker.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  X.  Y 12 

Twenty-Third  Psalm.  W.  H. 
Xeidlinger.  G.  Schirmer, 
X.  Y 15 

My  Shepherd  is  the  Living  God. 
Eugene  Thayer.  Oliver  Dit- 
son Co.,  Boston    .        IO 

The  Divine  Lullaby.  J.  A. 
Parks.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  X.  Y 10 

Exalt  Him.  E.  W.  Hanscom. 
Arthur  P.  Schmidt,  Boston    .    .16 

While  Thee  I  Seek.  C.  P.  Mor- 
rison. Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston.     (See  note.) 12 

Before  the  Heavens  were 
Spread  Abroad.  Horatio  W. 
Parker.    Xovello  &  Co.,  X.  Y.    .12 

The  Day  is  Gently  Sinking  to 
a  Close.  A.  W.  Lansing. 
White-Smith  Music  Publish- 
ing Co.,  Boston 12 

The  Shadows  of  the  Evening 
Hours.  W.  F.  Sudds.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  XT.  Y.     .10 

Oh,  Pray  For  the  Peace  of  Jeru- 


412 


APPENDIX  II 


salem.  James  C.  Knox.  Ar- 
thur P.  Schmidt,  Boston     .    .    .20 

Even  Me.  John  C.  Warren. 
Oliver  Ditson  Co.,  Boston      .    .10 

Saviour  Again  to  Thy  Dear 
Name.  G.  W.  Chadwick. 
Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y 12 

Daybreak.  J.  A.  Parks.  The  Lo- 
renz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.     .    .10 

Out  of  the  Depths.  G.  W.  Mars- 
ton.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt,  Boston  .16 

Arise,  Shine,  for  Thy  Light  is 
Come.  Dudley  Buck.  Oliver 
Ditson  Co.,  Boston.  (See 
note.)        12 

Te  Deum  Laudamus.  John  Wie- 
gand.    J.  Fischer  &  Bio.,  N.  Y.    .35 

Te  Deum  in  F.  E.  L.  Ashford. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 12 

Morn's  Roseate  Hues.  G.  W. 
Chadwick.  Novello  &  Co., 
N.  Y 12 

God  is  Our  Refuge.  E.  L. 
Ashford.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

Oh,  Taste  and  See.  G.  W. 
Marston.  Arthur  P.  Schmidt, 
Boston 12 

All  Thy  Works  Praise  Thee,  O 
Lord.  C.  B.  Hawley.  The 
John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.     .    .25 

Jesus,  Saviour,  Pilot  Me.  P. 
A.  Schnecker.  Oliver  Ditson 
Co.,  Boston 10 

Bread  of  the  World.  Mendels- 
sohn-Zeckwer.  Theodore 
Presser,  Phila 10 

Praise  the  Lord.  A.  Randeg- 
ger.     J.  Fischer  &  Bro.,  N.  Y.    .25 


Lord  of  Our  Life.  J.  T.  Field. 
Novello  &  Co.,  N.  Y 12 

Bless  the  Lord.  T.  D.  Will- 
iams. The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 10 

O  Love  That  will  not  Let  Me 
Go.  Cuthbert  Harris.  Ar- 
thur P.  Schmidt,  Boston     .    .    .12 

The  Hymn  of  the  Angels.  John 
E.  West.  Novello  &  Co., 
N.  Y. 15 

He  Shall  Come  Down  like 
Rain.  (Christmas.)  Dudley 
Buck.  Oliver  Ditson  Co., 
Boston.     (See  note.) 12 

Sing,  Oh,  Sing,  This  Blessed 
Morn.  (Christmas.)  W.  H. 
Neidlinger.  Novello  &  Co., 
N.  Y 12 

Holy  Night.  (Christmas.)  E. 
S.  Lorenz.  The  Lorenz  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  N.  Y 06 

The  First  Christmas.  (Christ- 
mas.)  J.  Barnby.  Novello 
&Co.,  N.  Y 15 

The  Star  of  Bethlehem.  (Christ- 
mas.) J.  A.  Parks.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .12 

Sing,  O  Heavens.  (Christmas.) 
Alfred  R.  Gaul.  Novello  & 
Co.,  N.  Y 05 

The  Choir  Angelic.  (Easter.) 
E.  W.  Hanscom.  Arthur  P. 
Schmidt,  Boston 12 

King  of  Glory.  (Easter.)  J.  A. 
Parks.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y .40 

As  It  Began  to  Dawn.  (Easter.) 
Myles  B.  Foster.  Novello  & 
Co.,  N.  Y 05 


10.     MONTHLY  JOURNALS  OF  CHOIR  MUSIC 


The  Choir  Leader.  Edited  by 
E.  S.  Lorenz.  Medium  in 
grade  for  trained  volunteer 
chorus  choirs.  The  Lorenz 
Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y 90 

The  Choir  Herald.  Edited  by 
E.  S.  Lorenz.  Popular  in 
style  and  easier  grade.  The 
Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .90 


Der  Kirchenchor.  (German.) 
Edited  by  E.  S.  Lorenz.  Pop- 
ular in  style  and  easy  grade. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 

The  Choir.  Edited  by  J.  H. 
Fillmore.  Popular  in  style 
and  easy  grade.  The  Fill- 
more Bros.  Co.,  Cin.,  O.   .    . 


00 


.90 


APPENDIX  II 


413 


The  Church  Choir.  Edited  by 
G.  F.  Rosche.  Very  easy 
grade.  Geo.  F.  Rosche  S 
Co.,  Chicago 90 

Standard  Choir  Monthly.  Ed- 
ited by  J.  W.  Lerman.  Fairly 
easy  in  grade.  The  Tullar- 
Meredith  Co.,  N.  Y 1. 00 


The  Parish  Choir.  Strictly 
churchly  in  style.  The  Parish 
Choir  Co.,  Boston.  (See 
note.) 1.00 

Beirly's  Anthem  Serial.  Easy 
to  medium  in  grade.  Edited 
and  published  by  Alfred 
Beirly,  Chicago 50 


D.     SPECIAL  MUSIC 
11.     MUSIC  FOR  JUNIOR  AND  CHILDREN'S  CHOIRS 

The     Junior     Choir.      Ira     B.  Gabriel.     The  Fillmore  Bros. 

Wilson     and     J.    S.    Fearis.  Co.,  Cin.,  0 50 

The    Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  The  Young  People's  Choir.   Rev. 

N.  Y 30  W.  F.  McCauley,  Lit.  D.    The 

The  Gospel  Chorus.     Chas.  H.  Lorenz  Publishing  Co.,  N.  Y.    .50 


12.     MUSIC  FOR  WOMEN'S  CHOIRS 


The  G  Clef  Choir.  Geo.  F. 
Root  and  D.  B.  Towner.  The 
John  Church  Co.,  Cin.,  O.     .    .50 

Gospel  Hymn  Selections.  Geo. 
F.  Rosche  and  Chas.  H.  Ga- 
briel. Geo.  F.  Rosche  &  Co., 
Chicago 47 

The  Women's  Choir.  E.  L. 
Ashford   and   E.    S.    Lorenz. 


The   Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 

N.  Y 30 

Parks  Sacred  Quartets.  (Vols. 
1.2,3.)  J.  A.  Parks.  The  J. 
A.  Parks  Co.,  York,  Neb.  .    .    .50 

Sacred  Duets,  Trios,  and  Quar- 
tets. Geo.  F.  Rosche.  Geo. 
F.  Rosche  &  Co.,  Chicago     .    .75 


13.     MUSIC  FOR  MEN'S  VOICES 


The  Gospel  Chorus.  John  R. 
Sweeney  and  W.  J.  Kirkpat- 
rick.     J.  J.  Hood,  Phila.     .    . 

The  Gospel  Male  Choir.  (Vols. 
I  and  2.)  Jas.  R.  McGrana- 
han.  The  John  Church  Co., 
Cin.,  O 

Manly  Praise.  E.  S.  Lorenz. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 

Towner's  Male  Choir.  D.  B. 
Towner.  The  F.  H.  Revell 
Company,  N.  Y 

Men's  Songs.  F.  S.  Shepard. 
The  Hope  Publishing  Co., 
Chicago 35 

One    Hundred    Gospel   Songs. 


5° 


5° 


35 


35 


D.  B.  Towner.  Bible  Inst. 
Colp.  Ass'n.,  Chicago     ...     -35 

Sons  of  Praise.     D.  B.  Towner, 

E.  S.  Lorenz  and  Ira  B. 
Wilson.  The  Lorenz  Publish- 
ing Co.,  N.  Y 35 

The  Male  Chorus.  Ira  B. 
San  key.  The  Biglow  & 
Main  Co.,  N.  Y 35 

Aggressive  Songs.  E.  S.  Lo- 
renz. The  Lorenz  Publishing 
Co.,  N.  Y 15 

Parks  Sacred  Quartets.  (Vols. 
1,  2,  3.)  J.  A.  Parks.  The 
J.  A.  Parks  Co.,  York,  Neb.  .    .50 

Songs  Sacred  and  Secular.  I. 
H.  Meredith  and  G.  F.  Tul- 


414 


APPENDIX  III 


lar.      The      Tullar-Meredith 

Co.,N.  Y 35 

Anthems  of  Praise.  J.  S. 
Fearis.  Geo.  F.  Rosche  & 
Co.,  Chicago 1.00 


The  Men's  Choir.  E.  S.  Lo- 
renz  and  Ira  B.  Wilson. 
The  Lorenz  Publishing  Co., 
N.  Y 30 


14 

Favourite  Solos.  \V.  E.  M. 
Hackleman.  Hackleman  Mu- 
sic Co.,  Indianapolis,  Ind.    .  £1.00 


POPULAR  GOSPEL  SOLOS 

The  Soloist.     E.  O.  Excell.     E. 
O.  Excell,  Chicago  .    .    .    .  $1.00 


APPENDIX    III 

Suggestive  Outlines  and  Subjects  for  Song  Sermons 
and  Song  Services 

A.    Outlines 

The  outlines  here  given,  whether  original  or  selected,  are  given  by  way  of 
suggestion,  not  for  mechanical  adoption.  In  case  they  are  used,  they  ought 
to  be  readapted  to  fit  the  local  situation.  The  sheet  music  and  octavos  cited 
will  be  found  in  the  preceding  appendix  with  price  and  publisher  noted. 

I.     SONG  SERMONS 

I.  The  Homeland 
Introductory  Worship 

a.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Oh,  worship  the  King." 

b.  Scripture  Reading.     Psalms  149,  150. 

c.  Prayer — (Pass  from  the  earthly  groping  after  God  to  the  eternal  worship 

face  to  face). 

d.  Anthem    by    the    Choir — "  Universal    Praise  "    (Ashford),    or   "  Some 

Blessed  Day"  (Nevin). 

I.     Longing  For  the  Homeland 

e.  Solo — "  One  Sweetly  Solemn  Thought  "  (Ambrose). 

f.  Choir  and  Congregation — "  O  Paradise  "  (Barnby). 

II.  The  Passing  Over 

g.  Duet  for  Tenor  and  Alto—"  Crossing  the  Bar  "  (Ashford). 
h.     Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Hark,  Hark,  My  Soul "  (Shelley). 

III.     Meeting  the  Loved  Ones 
i.     Quartet  for  Men's  Voices — "  The  Homeland  "  (Towner). 
/.     Hymn  by  the   Congregation — "  Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  " 
(Dykes). 


APPENDIX  III  415 

IV.     Meeting  the  Master 
k.     Solo — "  Face  to  Face  "  (Johnson). 
L     Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  There's  a  Friend  in  the  Homeland"  (Havens). 

V.    The  Glory  of  the  Homeland 
m.     Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Jerusalem  the  Golden"  (Ewing). 
n.     Solo — "  The  Holy  City  "  (Adams). 

0.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Forever  with  the  Lord  "  (Woodbury). 

2.  The  Two  Closed  Doors 

I.    Christ  Knocking  at  the  Closed  Door  of  Human  Hearts 

1.  Provision  for  Salvation. 

a.  Hymn — "There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood  "  (Fountain). 

2.  Christ  is  calling. 

b.  Hymn  by  Choir  and  Congregation — "  I  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus 

Say  "  (Varina  or  Vox  Delicti). 

3.  Christ  is  knocking  through  memories  of  sainted  loved  ones. 

c.  Solo—"  Tell  Mother  I'll  be  There  "  (Fillmore),  or  «  The  Promise 

Made  to  Mother  "  (Fearis). 

4.  Christ  is  knocking  personally. 

d.  Scripture  Reading.     Rev.  3 :  14-22. 
<•.      Hymn — "  Let  Him  in  "  (Excell). 

5.  Christ's  knocking  persistent  and  complete. 

f.  Solo — "  Would  You  Believe  "  (Towner). 

g.  Hymn — "  There's  a  wideness  in  God's  mercy." 

6.  Opening  the  Door  to  the  Divine  Guest. 

h.     Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Just  as  I  am  "  (Parks). 
t.      Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea  " 
(Wood  worth). 

II.    The  Door  Closed  Against  the  Soul 

1.  The  door  is  finally  closed. 

j.      Song  by  the  Congregation — "  Almost  Persuaded  "  (Bliss). 
k.     Song  by  the  Choir — "  No  Room  in  Heaven  "  (Baltzell). 

2.  The  door  is  closed  forever. 

/.       Scripture  Reading.     Matt.  25  ;  1-12. 

tn.    Song    by   the    Congregation — "  When    the    King    Comes    in " 
(Lorenz). 

3.  The  Cost  of  Salvation 
Introductory  Services 

1.  The  Separation  of  the  Father  and  the  Son. 

a.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  For  God  so  Loved  the  World." 

2.  The  Humiliation  to  Christ  of  the  Earthly  Life. 

b.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  A  pilgrim  thro'  this  lonely  world  " 

(Serenity). 

c.  Anthem    by    the    Choir — "  Thou    Didst    Leave    Thy   Throne " 

(Schnecker). 

3.  Sufferings  of  His  Earthly  Life. 

d.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  How  beauteous  were   the  marks 

divine  "  (Olivet). 

e.  Solo — "  O  Love  Divine  "  (Nevin). 


416  APPENDIX  III 

4.  The  Agony  of  Gethsemane. 

f.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  'Tis  midnight ;   and  on   Olive's 

brow  "  (Olive's  Brow). 

g.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Bread  of  the  World  "  (Mendelssohn') . 

h.     Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Deep  in  our  hearts  let  us  record  " 
(Baca). 

5.  His  Death  on  Calvary. 

i.     Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Our  Suffering  Lord  "  (Lorenz). 
/     Hymn    by  the    Congregation — "  When    I    survey   the   wondrous 

cross  "  (Zephyr). 
k.     Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  As  Christ  upon  the  Cross  "  (Bullard). 
/.     Hymn    by   the    Congregation — "  Rock   of  Ages,  cleft  for  Me  " 

(Toplady). 

II.     SONG  SERVICES 

4.     An  Hour  of  Worship 

a.  Anthem  by  the  Choir—"  Oh,  Come  Let  Us  Sing  "  (Parks). 

b.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "Oh,  come,  loud  anthems  let  us  sing" 

(Duke  St.). 

c.  Responsive  Scripture  Reading. 

d.  Prayer. 

e.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  I  Sought  the  Lord"  (Anderson). 

f.  Hymn   by   the   Congregation — "  Stand   up   and   bless   the   Lord "  (St. 

Thomas). 

g.  Duet  for  Mezzo  Soprano  and  Alto — "  I  will  Magnify  Thee,  O  God  " 

(Mosenthal). 
h.     Anthem  by  the  Choir—"  O  Holy  Father  "  (Marchetti-Parks). 
i.     Responsive  Scripture  Reading. 
/     Hymn   by   the   Congregation — "  My  God,  how  wonderful  Thou  art " 

(Dundee). 
k.     Address. 

/.     Anthem  by  the  Choir—"  Te  Deum  in  G  "  (Millard). 
m.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell "  (Old 

Hundredth). 

Closing  with  L.  M.  Doxology  and  Benediction. 

5.     The  Good  Shepherd 

a.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Give  to  the  winds  thy  fears  "  (Franklin). 

b.  Concert  Reading  of  Twenty-third  Psalm. 

c.  Prayer. 

d.  Solo — "  The  King  of  Love  My  Shepherd  is." 

e.  Hymn    by  the  Congregation — "  The   King   of   love  my  shepherd  is " 

(Cecilia). 

/  Soprano  Solo  and  Men's  Quartet — "  What  a  Comforter  is  Jesus  "  (Lorenz). 

g.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  The  Shepherd's  Good  Care  "  (Nevin). 

h.  Reading  of  John  10 :  11- 18  and  comment  upon  it. 

*'.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul  "  (Martyn). 

/.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Guide  Me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah  "  (Emerson). 

k.  Duet  for  Soprano  and  Alto—"  The  Lord  is  My  Shepherd  "  (Smart). 


APPENDIX  III  417 

/.     Solo  and  Response  by  Choir — "  Peace,  perfect  peace,  in  this  dark  world 

of  sin  "  (Pax  tecum). 
m.    Closing  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  God  is  the  refuge  of  His  saints  " 

(Ward). 

6.     Light  at  Evening  Time 

a.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Fast  Falls  the  Sun  "  (Havens). 

b.  Hymn  by  the   Congregation — "Glory  to  Thee,  my  God,  this  night" 

(Evening  Hymn). 

c.  Scripture  Reading.     Job  33  :  14-26. 

d.  Prayer. 

e.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  In  the  Night  Watches  n  (Lorenz). 

f.  Solo — "  Abide  with  Me  "  (Ashford). 

g.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Abide  with  Me  "  (Eventide). 

h.     Duet  for  Soprano  and  Tenor — "  Beyond  Life's  Evening  Star  "  (Lorenz). 

i.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Father,  Keep  Us  in  Thy  Care  "  (Sullivan- 
Hodges). 

/.  Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Sun  of  my  soul,  Thou  Saviour  dear " 
(Hursley). 

k.     Duet—"  Thy  Peace,  O  Lord  "  (Neidlinger). 

/.      Vesper  address. 

m.    Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Day  is  dying  in  the  west "  (Chautauqua). 

Benediction. 

7.     Watchfulness 

a.  Anthem  by  the  Choir — "  Miserere  "  (Stainer  or  Redhead). 

b.  Address  on  Topic. 

c.  Hymn  by  Choir  or  Congregation — "  Sleepers  Wake  "  (Nicolai). 

d.  Hymn  by  Congregation — "  Behold  the  Bridegroom  cometh." 

e.  Solo  and  Choir — "  Could  Ye  not  Watch  "  (Crucifixion,  Stainer). 

f.  Hymn  by  Congregation — "  Christian,  seek  not  yet  repose." 

g.  Anthem    by  the    Choir — "  Thou   That    Sleepest "  (Daughter   of  Jairus, 

Stainer). 
Hymn  by  the  Congregation — "  Ye  servants  of  the  Lord." 

Rev.  James  Baden-Powell  in  "  Choralia." 

8.     Visions 
(Based  on  the  Oratorio  of  "  St.  Paul ") 

a.  Opening  Services. 

b.  Contralto  Recit. — "  As  He  Journeyed  towards  Damascus." 

c.  Aria — "  But  the  Lord  is  Mindful  of  His  Own." 

d.  Tenor  and  Bass  Recit.  and  Chorus — "  And  as  He  Journeyed." 

e.  Scriptures. 

f.  Prayers. 

g.  Anthem  by  the  Choir—"  Hark,  Hark,  My  Soul." 
h.     Address  on  "  Visions." 

i.      Chorus — "  Rise  up.    Arise." 

/.    Choral—"  Sleepers,  Wake." 

k.     Tenor  Recit. — "  And  His  Companions." 

/.      Bass  Aria — "  O  God,  have  Mercy." 

m.   Closing  Hymn  by  the  Congregation. 

B.  J.  Lang  in  "  Choir  and  Chorus  Conducting." 


418  APPENDIX  III 

II.     SUBJECTS 

These  themes  can  be  richly  and  easily  enforced  and  illustrated  with  stand- 
ard hymns  and  choir  numbers,  or  by  the  popular  Gospel  songs,  found  in  any 
adequate  collection.  Remember  that  some  points  will  need  to  be  indirectly 
illustrated  rather  than  directly  suggested  by  the  musical  numbers.  These 
subjects  could  be  multiplied  indefinitely.  The  topical  index  of  any  properly 
edited  hymnal  will  be  found  very  suggestive.  The  need  of  the  occasion  and 
the  available  materials  ought  to  stimulate  the  minister's  mental  suggestiveness. 

A.  Song  Sermons 

i.     Hid  with   Christ   in  God — ( Self-forge tfulness,  consciousness   of  God, 
eternal  comradeship). 

2.  Drawing  Nigh  to  God — (In  awe,  reverence,  confidence,  admiration,  re- 

joicing, devotion,  love). 

3.  The  Everlasting  Arms — (The  divine  protection  and  care  in  all  their 

phases  and  manifestations). 

4.  The  Fatherhood  of  God — (Manifested  in  love,  thoughtfulness,  sacrifice, 

patience,  forgiving  grace). 

5.  Our  Elder  Brother — (Sharer  of  our   limitations,   of  our   sufferings,  of 

our  sorrows,  of  our  death.     Also   our  Teacher,  Keeper,  Helper, 
Saviour  and  Coheir). 

6.  The  Life  of  Christ — (Example,  Teacher,  Healer,  Comforter,  Friend). 

7.  The  Plan  of  Salvation — (Man  in  sin,  Christ  the  Sacrifice,  Christ  the 

Seeker,  man's  acceptance,  the  divine  indwelling). 

8.  The  Mercy  Seat — (God's  promise,  God's  answer). 

9.  God's  Ways  are  Best — (Resignation,  Recognition  of  God's  wisdom  and 

love,  Eagerness  to  know  and  do  His  will). 
10.     The   Miracle  of  Love — (Our  unworthiness,  God's  love, — our  pettiness, 
God's  care  for  us, — our  neglect,  God's  unceasing  devotion, — our  sin, 
God's  salvation). 

B.  Song  Services 

1.  Life's  Little  Day — (Its  labours,  trials,  defeats,  victories,  joys,  its  noon- 

day, its  eveningtide). 

2.  Sabbath  Hours — (Rest,  worship,  communion,  opportunities,  etc.). 

3.  God's  Infinite  Perfections — (Emotional  contemplation  of  His  attributes). 

4.  The  Grace  of  God — (Rich  theme,  objectively  and  subjectively). 

5.  The  Light  of  the  World — (Man's  ignorance  and  darkness,  Christ  the 

revealer,  the  quickener,  the  transformer). 

6.  Seeking  for  Christ — (Vague  longings  of  the  unredeemed,  the  Christian 

desire  for  deeper  revelation). 

7.  The  Ninety  and  Nine — (Christ's  search  and  call  for  the  unsaved). 

8.  The  Coronation  of  Christ — (His  humiliation  and  battle,  His  victory  over 

sin  and  death,  His  reception  in  heaven). 

9.  Crowning  the  King — (A  service  of  praise  to  Christ). 
10.     Coming  to  Christ — (Invitation,  longing,  acceptance). 


INDEX 


Addison,  Joseph,  17 

"Alas  and  did  my  Saviour  bleed," 

comment  on,  227 
Amen,  its  abuse,  231 
Andover       Theological      Seminary, 

music  in,  130 
Associated  ideas,  with  music,  30,  31 


Baring-Gould,  S.,  118,  119 
Barnby,  Sir  Jos.,  119,  222,  295 
Bartholomew,  "  The    Psychology  of 

Music,"  24 
Beethoven,  Ludwig  von,  26,  28,  65 
Blackie,  Prof.  John  Stuart,  147 
Bliss,  P.  P.,  46,  105 
Breed,  Dr.  Wm.  A.,  90,  105,  117, 

118,150 


Choir 

Blending  of  voices,  245,  255 

Boy  choir,  character  of,  245  ;  dif- 
ficulties, 246 ;  history  of,  246 

Children's  choir,  323 

Chorus  choir,  difficulties  of,  251  ; 
development  benefits  congrega- 
tion, 257  ;  in  touch  with  congre- 
gation, 250 ;  possible  variety, 
25 1 ;  reasons  for  commending 
it,  250;  representative  of  the 
congregation,  251 

Deportment  of,  311 

Detrimental  to  congregational 
singing,  239 

Developing  social  life  of,  290 

Dress  of,  309 

Entering  as  a  body,  308 

Entrance  examination,  258 

Expenses  of,  299 

Extra  music  by,  304 


Formal  organization  of,  260 
Men's   choir,  difficulties  of,  249 ; 

insufficient,  249 ;  value  of,  248 
Objection  to  singing  in,  256 
Organization  of  parts  of,  261 
Primary  purpose  of,  243  ;  not  cul- 
tivation of  taste,  242  ;  not  pride 
in  good  music,  241  ;  not  training 
of  singer,  242;   not  variety  in 
service,  241 
Quartet  choirs,  objections  to,  244  ; 

how  to  select  voices,  245 
Relation  to  general  church  work, 

306 
Rising  of,  310 

Selection  of  singers  for,  245,  254 
Singers'  ability  to  read,  255 
Singing  of  Gospel  songs,  306 
Singing  of  hymns,  212,  303 
Size  of,  254 

Social  gatherings  of,  291 
Social  lines  in,  256 
Subsidiary  quartets,  262 
Substitutes  for,  252,  322 
Supervision  of,  262 
Unconverted  persons  in,  256 
Women's    choir,    character,   diffi- 
culties, and  insufficiency  of,  250 
Choir  Director 
Beating  of  time,  280 
Free  to  criticise,  271 
Importance  of,  264 
Knowledge  of  hymnal,  266 
Knowledge  of  voice,  266 
Musical  capacity  and  information, 

265 
Must  be  a  Christian,  267 
Must  mix  among  the  people,  269 
Must  watch  for  singers,  268 
Public  direction  by,  310 
Qualities  demanded  in,  264 
Reading  of  texts  by,  311 
Selection  of  music  by,  268 


419 


420 


ESTDEX 


Social  work  of,  269 
Choir  Rehearsal 

Begin  promptly,  278 

Correct  intonation,  282 

Enunciation  of  words,  283 

Open  with  prayer,  279 

Overcoming  difficult  passages,  281 

Practicing  hymn  tunes,  287 

Reading  the  notes,  280 

Securing     expression     and    spon- 
taneity, 284 

Tone  blending,  282 

Tremolo  and  portamento,  283 

Where  held,  278 
«  Christ  in  the  Garden,"  94,  95 
Church  Music 

Abstract  standards  do  not  apply  to, 

5L393 
All   religious   emotions   expressed 

by,  S3 
Applied  art,  48 
Purpose  controls,  49 
Rhythmical   church   music,  value 

of,  56 
Spontaneity  essential,  50 
Church  Service 

Evening  service  for  outsiders,  330 
Morning  and  evening  services  too 

much  alike,  327 
Uniformity  of  program  deprecated, 

3i8 

Unity  of,  desirable,  181 
Church  Solos 

Faults  of  solo  singers,  353 

Integral  part  of  church  service,  35 1 

Motives  important,  350 

Selection  of  solos,  352 

Texts  of  solos,  350 
Congregational  Singing 

Choir  leading,  212 

Direct  communion  with  God  in,  194 

Establishes  responsiveness,  194 

Excessive  comment  in,  230 

Expression  in,  223 

Historical   examples   of  value   of, 
191,  192 

Inspires  preacher,  194 

Leadership  in,  209 

Organist's  influence  on,  214 

Psychical  value  of,  193 

Reaches  individuals,  196 

Sincerity  in,  202 


True  success  of,  218 

Unison  singing,  232 
Cornets  in  leading,  213 
Crosby,  Fanny,  156,  157 
Curwen,  Dr.  J.  S.,  49,  114,  117,  132, 
206,  372 


Dickinson,  Edward,  43,  109 
Duty  of  singing  enforced,  60 
Dykes,  Dr.  John  B.,  eulogized   by 

Dr.    Breed,    117;  criticised   by 

Sir  H.  Smart,  118 


Edwards,  Jonathan,  60,  192 
English  Hymn  Tunes,  205 
Evangelistic  campaigns,  purpose,  use 

of  music  in,  358 
Evangelistic  Music 

Collections  of,  359 

Freedom  of,  361 

May  take  place  of  sermons,  359 
Evening  service,  character  of,  217 


Fifth  Symphony,  Beethoven's,  65 

"  Foundation,"  98 

Funeral  Music 

Limited  range  of  selection,  355 
Often  too  hopeless  and  depressing, 

355 
Selected  by  minister,  356 
Suggestion  of  funeral  hymns,  356 


General  Theological  Seminary,  130 
German  Chorals,  useful  in  Germany, 
113;  rarely  available  in  Amer- 
ica, 128 
Gospel  Songs 
Appreciated  by  practical  workers, 

110 
Best  not  offensive  in  rhythm,  107 
Comparison  between  current  songs 

and  old  standards  unjust,  165 
Derived  from  "  spiritual,"  106 
Emotional,  109 

Examples  of  weak  texts  of,  160 
Literary  value  of  the  best,  1 69 
Opposition  to,  109 


INDEX 


421 


Opposition  similar  to  that  against 
metrical  Psalms,  Watts'  hymns, 
etc.,   159 

Short-lived,  108 

Sincere  expression  of  certain  stages 
of  culture  and  religious  experi- 
ence, 164 

Texts  not  essentially  different,  156 

True  attitude  towards,  1 1 1 

Used  by  most  successful  churches, 
in 

Value  of,  107,  164 
Gottschalk,  Louis  M.,  24 
Gould,  Nathaniel  D.,  60 
Gurney,  Edmund,  21,  23,  30,  32 

H 

"Hanford,"  119 

Hastings,  Thomas,  60 

Havergal,  Frances  R.,  156 

Haydn,  Francis  Joseph,  37 

Heber,  Bishop  Reginald,  150 

Helmholz,  23,  29 

Herbert,  George,  145 

"  History   and   Use  of  Hymns  and 

Hymn  Tunes,"  105 
"  History  of  Music  in  the  Western 

Church,"  43 
Holden,  Oliver,  87 
Holmes,  Oliver  Wendell,  171 
Hopkins,  Dr.  E.  J.,  119 
Hymns 

Announcement  of,  198 

Character  of,  144 

Comments  on,  200 

Definitions  of,  143 

Examples  of  selection  of,  183 

Gospel  hymns  (see  Gospel  songs), 
156 

Hortatory,  may  be,  151 

How  to  impress,  219 

Illustration  of,  178 

Literary  values  important,  170 

Memorizing  of,  177 

Meters  of,  172 

Narrow  ideals  of,  152 

Omission  of  verses,  199 

Practical  study  of,  176 

Reading  of,  199 

Scripture  paraphrase  not  neces- 
sary, 150 

Selection  of,  180 


Spiritual  values  of,  17 1 
Study  of,  167 

True  basis  of  selection,  181 
Unworthy  hymns,  162 
"  Hymns     Ancient    and    Modern," 

205 
Hymn  Tunes 
American,  86 
Arrangements  rarely  successful  as, 

126 
English  hymn  tunes,  115  ;  destroy 
congregational  singing  in  Eng- 
land,  206  ;  Dr.   Breed's  eulogy 
of,  117;  Dr.  Curwen's  opinion, 
117  ;  High  Church  school,  116; 
not  approved  as  a  whole,  1 16 
False  tests  of,  121 
From  German  sources,  89 
Native  in  character,  must  be,  127 
Origin  of,  when  important,  122 
Practicable,  must  be,  126 
Progress,  must  make,  127 
Teaching  hymn  tunes,  207 
Tests  of  a  good  hymn  tune,  125, 

206 
Time  in  which  sung,  220 
Hymnal  compiler's  troubles,  204 
Hymnals 

Gospel  songs  in,  84 
Impracticable  often,  80 
Smaller  hymnals  desired,  82 
Symmetrical  in  structure,  83 

I 

"  I  Can't  Stay  Away,"  100 

"  I  Know  not  What  Awaits  Me,''  46 

"  I  Want  to  Go,"  103 

"  I  will  Arise,"  102 

"  In  the  Morning,"  104 

Interludes,  372 

J 

"  Just  as  I  am,"  comments  on,  224 
K 

Kingsley,  George,  91 
L 

La  Trobe,  58 

Luther,  Martin,  1 13,  122 


422 


INDEX 


M 

Macfarren,  Sir  Geo.  A.,  50,  221 
Mason,  Lowell,   13,  60,  88,  89,  91, 

221,  254 
Minister,  The 

Final  authority  in  music  of  church, 

319 

Helped  by  suggestions  of  choir,  317 

Knowledge  of  music  not  impossi- 
ble, 76 

Knowledge  of  music  strengthens, 
68 

Musical  minister,  59 

Relation  to  choir,  314 

Responsibility  for  organist,  368 

Should  advise  about  funerals,  351 

Should  be  practical,  76 

Should  command  methods  of  using 
music,  73 

Should  know  rudiments  of  music, 

73 
Spiritual  uplift  of  choir,  320 
Study  of  history  of  music,  63 
Treatment  of  musical  helpers,  319 
Monk,  Wm.  H.,  222,  296 
Moody,  D.  L.,  79,  106,  193,  239,  257 
Morning  service,  character  of,  216 
Music 

Child  of  Christian  Church,  62 
Children  and  animals  susceptible 

to,  22 
Correspondence    of    musical    and 

emotional  impressions,  26,  31 
Develops  artistic  capacity,  65 
Difference    of  susceptibility    to    it 

physical,  22 
Discord  between  music  and  feel- 
ing, 32 
Effect  of,  in   church   work   illus- 
trated, 42 
Emotionality  of,  23 
Furnishes  illustrations,  67 
In  the  Bible,  61 

Intellectual  basis  of  musical  feel- 
ing wanting,  23 
Intellectual  side  of,  33 
Musical  feeling  not  worship,  42 
Physical  effect  of,  22 
Pleasures  of,  39 

Preparatory  in  public  service,  39 
Prominent    place   in  church  serv- 
ice, 68 


Psychology  of,  19 
Quickens  emotional  nature,  66 
Relation  of,  to  emotion,  29 
Stimulates  the  imagination,  65 
Stirs  latent  emotion,  42 
Unifies  an  assembly,  40 
Useful  in  religious  work,  37,  38 
Value  of  knowledge  of,  72 

Music  Committee,  262 

"  My  Beloved,"  97 

N 

Nervous  effect  of  music,  25 
Nervous  impressions  vague,  27 


«  O  Brother,  be  Faithful,"  101 
«  Old  Hundredth,"  44,  79,  89 
Organ,  Pipe 

Action,  choice  of,  383 

Architect  of,  376 

Bids,  how  to  secure,  378 

Description  of  stops  of,  383 

Foundations  of,  383 

Location  of,  379 

Need  of,  373 

Price  of,  378 

Purchase  of,  375 

Recess  a  mistake,  381 

"  Tricks  of  the  trade,"  389 
Organ,  reed,  373 
Organist 

Antagonism  to  minister,  69,  369 

Danger  of  inappropriate  offertory, 

Director  also,  372 
Importance  in   opening  the  serv- 
ice, 368 
Needs  suggestions  in  registration, 

371 
Playing  hymn  tunes,  370 
Subordinate  to  director,  275 
Virtues  of,  276 
Weaknesses  of,  275 


Pastoral  Symphony,  Beethoven's,  28 
Phelps,  Dr.  Austin,  84,  143,  150,  181 
Piano,  for  church  use,  373  ;  for  Sun- 
day-school use,  366 
Pilgrim  Chorus,  effect  of,  20 


INDEX 


423 


Practicality  in  church  music,  12 
Precentor,  qualities  of  good,  209 
Program  music,  28 
Programs  of  service,   183,   185,  1S6, 

187 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  Music 

Canon  of,  58 

R 

Results  of  church  music,  15 


Sacred  Concert,  348 

Sankey,  Ira  D.,  55,   105,    117,  1 18, 

128,  348 
"  Save,  Mighty  Lord,"  99 
Schumann,  Robert,  23,  28 
Selection  of  Choir  Music 

Adaptation  to  situation,  294 

Capacity  of  choir  considered,  293 

Carefully  made,  293 

Prompt  selection,  297 

Standard  neither  narrow  nor  ex- 
clusive, 297 
Selection  of  hymn  tunes,  204 
"  Sensations  of  Tone,  The,"  23 
Sensibility,  excess  of,  32 
Sincerity,  need  of,  394 
Smart,  Sir  Henry,  117,  118,  128,  222 
Song  Sermon,  The 

Choice  of  themes  for,  333 

Development  of,  336 

Emotional  in  character,  331 

Examples  of  a,  337 

Hymns,  use  of  in,  334 

Introduction  worshipful,  333 

Plans  not  too  analytical,  334 

Variety  of  music,  335 

Without  a  choir,  337 
Song  Service,  The 

Logical  unity  not  needed,  344 

Miscellaneous  song  service,  347 

Report  of  a,  345 
"  Spirituals,"  91 

Gospel  song  outgrowth  of  them,  105 


How  originated,  92 

Not  negro  in  origin,  92 

Often  based  on  popular  melodies, 

93 

Stainer,  Dr.  John,  234 

Stennet,  Samuel,  146 

Stowe,  Harriet  Beecher,  168,  240 

Sullivan,  Sir  Arthur,  118,  119 

Sunday-School 

Appropriate  hymns  for,  363 
Character  of  music  for,  365 
Furnishes  singers  for  choir,  322 
Heavy  music  ill-adapted  for,  365 
Instrumental  support  in,  366 
Leader  of  music  in,  366 
Not  a  devotional  service,  363 


Tannhauser,  effect  of  overture  of,  21 
Theological    Seminaries,   music    in, 

130,  133 
Thibaur,  A.  G.,  122,  369 
"  Traumerei,"  effect  of,  23 

u 

Union  Theological  Seminary,  132 
Unison  Singing,  232 

w 

Wagner,  Richard,  20,  29,  34,  36 
Watts,  Isaac,  44,  228 
WTesley,  Charles,  145,  162 
Wesley,  John,  192,  196 
White,  Henry  Kirke,  148 
Whittier,  John  Greenleaf,  169 
Willis,   Richard   Storrs,  28,  43,  60, 

128 
Wodell,  F.  W.,  245,  256 
Woman's  value  in  church  music,  248 
Wordsworth,  Bishop  C,  146,  152 


Yale  Divinity  School,  131 
«'  Young  People  All,"  96 


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